No. 1 Rowing advances all three boats to Grand Finals of NCAA Championships

Saturday, May 28

Sarasota, Fla.

University of Texas

NCAA Championships

No. 1 Rowing advances all three boats to Grand Finals of NCAA Championships

05.28.2022 | Rowing

Semifinals Results

The Longhorns will compete for a second consecutive NCAA title on Sunday.

SARASOTA, Fla. – No. 1 Texas won two races and placed second in a third in the semifinals of the 2022 NCAA Rowing Championships at Nathan Benderson Park on Saturday morning to advance all boats to Sunday's Grand Finals. The Longhorns won their First Eight and Second Eight semifinals and placed second in the Four and advanced all boats to the Grand Finals for the fourth consecutive championship.

The Longhorns will race for a second consecutive national championship on Sunday and the First Eight will look to defend their national title.

Keep the main thing the main thing. 🤘#HereComesTexas | #HookEm | #TexasTeammates pic.twitter.com/TLRwDFLBwO
— Texas Rowing (@TexasRowing) May 28, 2022

Texas' First Eight and Second Eight have won each of their races at the national regatta and remain unbeaten on the year with 10 race victories apiece, while the First Eight has won 18 consecutive races dating back to the beginning of last season.

"We had another good day, and getting all boats into the A final is very important," said Texas head coach Dave O'Neill. "There's some really tough competition, and tomorrow will have some great racing."

After a fifty minute delay due to an early morning storm system that rolled through the area, the Texas First Eight kicked off the morning with a win. The Longhorns got out fast, holding a three-quarter length boat lead over Brown at 500 meters and extending the advantage to a full length at the 1,000 meter marker. At 1,250 meters, Texas had a half-length of open water when the clouds opened up and it began to pour rain. UT continued to extend the lead and closed out the race with a time of 6:18.459, followed by Brown (6:22.995) and California (6:23.039), clinching a spot in the Grand Final just as the rain began to subside.

The Texas Second Eight followed with a thrilling victory, overtaking Washington in the final 250 meters to win the semifinal and book their ticket to the Grand Final. The Huskies went out fast, holding a half-boat lead at 500 meters, which the Longhorns cut to a quarter-length at the midway marker. Texas slowly chipped away at the Washington lead, cutting the distance to a deck at 1,300 meters and pulling even at the around 1,500 meters. The crews battled over the final 500m with the Horns powering past the Huskies down the stretch. UT finished with a winning time of 6:23.878, while Washington took second in 6:25.192 and Princeton third in 6:27.952.

Lightning in the area caused another delay just as Texas' Second Eight semifinal conclude, resulting in an 80 minute delay in the race schedule and forcing all boats on the water to dock and the athletes to take shelter.

Once racing resumed, the Four collected a second-place finish to clinch a spot in the Grand Final. Washington once again went out fast, taking a three-quarter length lead at 500 meters and extending it to a full length by 750 meters. The Huskies built upon their lead over the next 1,000 meters, leading by open water at the halfway mark. UT fought back and closed the gap to less than a boat length over the final 250 meters, finishing runner-up with a time of 7:11.366, with Washington winning in 7:09.214 and Brown placing third in 7:15.124.

Texas is one of four teams to qualify a boat in each Grand Final race, along with No. 2 Stanford, No. 5 Princeton and No. 6 Washington, while third-ranked Brown will have a boat in the First Eight and Four Grand Finals. No. 10 California will race in the First Eight Grand Final, No. 4 Yale and No. 9 Virginia will race in the Grand Final of the Second Eight and No. 7 Ohio State will race in the Four Grand Final.

The NCAA Championships will conclude on Sunday, May 29, with the Grand Finals and be stream online at NCAA Championships Live.

NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP RACE SCHEDULE
Four, Grand Final - 8:36 a.m. CT (9:36 a.m. ET)
Lane 1: Brown
Lane 2: Princeton
Lane 3: Washington
Lane 4: Stanford
Lane 5: TEXAS
Lane 6: Ohio State

Second Eight, Grand Final - 9:00 a.m. CT (10:00 a.m. ET)
Lane 1: Princeton
Lane 2: Yale
Lane 3: TEXAS
Lane 4: Stanford
Lane 5: Washington
Lane 6: Virginia

First Eight, Grand Final - 9:24 a.m. CT (10:24 a.m. ET)
Lane 1: Princeton
Lane 2: Brown
Lane 3: Stanford
Lane 4: TEXAS
Lane 5: Washington
Lane 6: California

NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP SEMIFINAL RESULTS
First Eight – Semifinal 1 Results
1. TEXAS - 6:18.459
2. Brown - 6:22.995
3. California - 6:23.039
4. Ohio State - 6:23.483
5. Pennsylvania - 6:33.771
6. SMU - 6:39.069

Second Eight – Semifinal 1 Results
1. TEXAS - 6:23.878
2. Washington - 6:25.192
3. Princeton - 6:27.952
4. Brown - 6:32.292
5. California - 6:34.384
6. Pennsylvania - 6:37.516

Four – Semifinal 1 Results
1. Washington - 7:09.214
2. TEXAS - 7:11.366
3. Brown - 7:15.124
4. Michigan - 7:18.684
5. Rutgers - 7:24.158
6. Virginia - 7:26.606

LINEUPS
First Eight: Rachel Rane (coxswain), Kaitlin Knifton (stroke) Francesca Raggi, Aspa Christodoulidis, Etta Carpender, Anna Jensen, Susanna Temming, Sophia Calabrese, Lisa Gutfleisch (bow)