No. 1 Rowing completes sweep of No. 13 SMU

Sunday, March 13

Dallas, Texas

8 A.M. CT

University of Texas

SMU

The Texas First Eight won its second race of the weekend at SMU

03.13.2022 | Rowing

Texas won all six races during the two days of competition in Dallas.

DALLAS – No. 1 Texas Rowing won three races against No. 13 SMU on Sunday to complete a two-day, six-race sweep of the Mustangs at White Rock Lake.

"This was a really good test for us in a number of ways," said Texas head coach Dave O'Neill. "SMU has a really good team, and we expected a challenge. It was good to see our boats respond and step up."

The competition began with a strong cross-headwind of eight to 15 mph that grew stronger through the morning.

Texas' First Four opened the day with its second victory of the weekend, overcoming an early deficit to register a time of 7:58.43 and win by 18.8 seconds.

The Second Eight took charge from the start and led throughout the races, posting a time of 7:13.57 that was the fastest time of the day.

In the First Eight race, SMU led by as much as four seats through 600 meters, but Texas fought back over the next 200 and was nearly a length at the halfway point. The Longhorns had open water at 1250 meters and closed out the race with a time of 7:13.63. It marked the 10th consecutive win across all competitions for the First Eight, including victories in all eight races during last season's national championship run.

"We made some big changes in the top two eights from yesterday, and it was great to see the different lineups," O'Neill said. "I was particularly impressed with Katelyn Bouthillette and the way the second eight raced from the first stroke. It was the first time Samantha Schalk, Sophia Calabrese and Hannah Medcalf raced in the first eight, and they looked really good, as well. Sue Holderness was impressive racing the full 2000 meters with the first four and making the most of each stroke."

"We'll have a good week of training coming up with this being spring break, and we know there are things we can improve moving forward," O'Neill said.

Next up, the Longhorns travel to Southern California from March 26-27 for the historic San Diego Crew Classic on the Fiesta Island-Crown Point shores of Mission Bay Park.

RESULTS
First Eight
1. TEXAS – 7:13.63
2. SMU – 7:18.15

Second Eight
1. TEXAS – 7:13.57
2. SMU – 7:28.94

First Four
1. TEXAS – 7:58.43
2. SMU – 8:17.23

Second Four and Third Eight
No official times and results were recorded for the 2V4 and 3V8 races.

LINEUPS
First Eight: Rachel Rane (coxswain), Hannah Medcalf (stroke), Francesca Raggi, Kaitlin Knifton, Etta Carpender, Anna Jensen, Samantha Schalk, Sophia Calabrese, Lisa Gutfleisch (bow)