SAN DIEGO, Calif. — The UC San Diego men's rowing team concluded the San Diego Crew Classic with a huge victory from the squad's Varsity 8 ahead of strong performances from Gonzaga, UCLA, and the University of San Diego. 
 
A second and third crew were also brought in by the Tritons, both competing for the same grand final put up solid times but came in short to major competition, falling in at third and fifth respectively. 

UC SAN DIEGO VARSITY 8
The Tritons' Varsity 8 put up an impeccable time in the grand final, claiming success in the varsity 8 race. The team clocked a winning time of 06:14.702 improving on their 6:25.400 qualifying time on day one. UC San Diego finished just over three seconds before Gonzaga coming in second with a time of 6:17.22.
 
UCLA followed in third place finishing the race in 06:23.753 while the University of San Diego claimed fourth place with a time of 06:24.829. Purdue, UC Davis, USC, and UC Santa Barbara rounded out the rest of the field finishing in fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth place respectively.
 
UC SAN DIEGO SECOND AND THIRD VARSITY 8
UC San Diego's second and third boats competed for the same title with the second varsity crew finishing in third and the third varsity crew finishing fifth.
 
The first place of the race went to Cal's second crew, with a winning time of 06:01.490, followed closely by their third boat, finishing in second place with a time of 06:02.397.
 
The Tritons' second crew then came in at third with a time of 06:22.050 while Gonzaga claimed fourth place, finishing in 06:24.992 shortly after. UC San Diego's third boat rowed in at fifth with a time of 06:35.396.

QUOTABLE
"We were pleased with the performance of our entire squad this weekend," shared Triton Head Coach Jeff Collett. "It is always fun to win at the Crew Classic but we have a lot of season left and will look to ake many improvements over the next two months."

TRITON TIDBITS

• UC San Diego's three participating crews all improved on their grand final qualifying times from day one.
• All three of UC San Diego boats placed top three in their respective heats on day one, sending all three crews to the finals.
• The Tritons' third crew clinched the finals qualification by just under a second with UCLA's boat following in with a time of 6:36.396.

 
UP NEXT
The Tritons will host the UC San Diego Invitational in Chula Vista, Calif. from Saturday, Apr.15 to Sunday, Apr. 16.

About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program has begun a new era as a member of the Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 83 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have garnered prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 90 percent, the highest rate among public institutions in Division I or II. For more information on the Tritons, visit UCSDtritons.com or follow UC San Diego Athletics on social media @UCSDtritons.