No. 8 Rowing qualifies second varsity eight for grand final at NCAA Championships

Saturday, May 28

Gold River, Calif. (Lake Natoma)

8:48 a.m. PT

University of Texas

NCAA Championships

No. 8 Rowing qualifies second varsity eight for grand final at NCAA Championships

05.28.2016 | Rowing

Texas sends a second varsity eight boat to an NCAA Championships grand final for the first time in program history.

GOLD RIVER, Calif. – No. 8 Texas' second varsity eight reached the grand final for the first time in school history, and UT sent its two additional boats to petite finals Saturday on day two of the NCAA Championships.

"There's always great racing during the semifinals at NCAA's, and that was certainly the case today," said second-year Texas head coach Dave O'Neill. "Our team raced hard, and I'm proud of the efforts."

Texas held fourth place behind Virginia, Ohio State and Brown through the opening 1000m of its II Eight (second varsity eight) semifinal heat before making a move for the top-three. Texas out-split Brown by nearly three seconds through the third 500m segment and overtook the Bears by the 1500m mark.

The Longhorns then made their move on Virginia for the second spot and overtook the Cavaliers for the second position in the final 500m. Texas needed only a top-three finish to advance to Sunday's grand final, but UT did one better and placed second at 6:25.035. Ohio State won the heat at 6:21.901 while Virginia qualified third for the grand final at 6:25.896. Texas' 2V8+ goes for a national title and competes in the II Eights grand final Sunday at 10:36 a.m. PT.

"The second eight was terrific as they really pushed in the second half of the race," O'Neill said. "We talk about putting together a full 2000m effort, and that's exactly what they did. We had to make an adjustment in the two seat since Rachel Fleming was unable to race. Lauren Mufarreh stepped in and did a great job. We'll re-evaluate the situation later this afternoon. Regardless of the lineup, that crew will be ready for tomorrow."

Stanford and Princeton led the six-boat I Eight (varsity eight) second semifinal at 1000 meters before Texas and Brown joined the leaders in the next 500 meters for what proved to be an incredibly tight fight to the finish. UT pulled slightly ahead of Brown for the third position at 1500m with the two schools tangling with Princeton for positioning into the grand final.

Brown, Princeton and Texas were nearly dead even at the finish with the three schools separated by merely .125 of a second at the 2000m finish. Stanford took the win at 6:18.911, while Brown and Princeton placed second and third at 6:19.515 and 6:19.550, respectively. Texas took fourth at 6:19.640 and missed qualification for the grand final by less than a tenth of a second. USC settled for fifth at 6:25.431 while Washington placed sixth at 6:26.754. Texas competes in the I Eights petite final Sunday at 10:48 a.m. PT.

"Our first eight had a terrific race but just missed making the A final," O'Neill said. "It was a great effort but a heartbreaking result. They showed they're capable of racing right with the top crews in the country, maybe even contending for the (awards) podium. However, they'll race in the B final, and that is sure to be a great race."

Washington, California and Michigan held the top-three races throughout the first semifinal of the fours, where Texas battled Princeton for fourth place. The Horns held off the Tigers and placed fourth at 7:17.686. Texas will compete in Sunday's fours petite final at 10 a.m. PT.

"The four had a strong push in the second half of the race," O'Neill concluded. "Unfortunately, they struggled a bit in the first half and were too far out to contend for a qualifying position. I'm sure they'll take care of that issue tomorrow and make the most of the last race of the year."

2016 NCAA Championships (Day 2 of 3)
Day 2 A-B Semifinals (for placement in grand and petite finals)

I Eights Semifinal Two

1 Stanford, 6:18.911

2 Brown, 6:19.515

3 Princeton, 6:19.550

4 TEXAS, 6:19.640

5 USC, 6:25.431

6 Washington, 6:26.754

Texas Crew: Katie Betsill (coxswain), Fanny Bon, Pippa Loveard, Gia Doonan, Mariam Soufi, Emily Froehlich, Sara Neaves, April Brown, Alice Bowyer
Texas Racing Shell: The Ruth Stiver