from Calbears.com
The No. 2 California men’s crew varsity 8+ captured its 16th IRA National Championship when the boat narrowly defeated top-ranked Washington by 0.263 seconds in the grand final to win the title Saturday at Cooper River in the final day of the 2010 IRA Championships.
“We were racing against some really good crews,” head coach Mike Teti said. “This shows how much of an elite, great program we have, and it’s great that we can take this championship back to Cal with us. I’m so blessed to have been a part of this. We get so much support from the athletic department, our alumns, our fans; this is for them too. I want to thank my assistant coaches Mike Vallarelli, Wyatt Allen, Luke Agnini, Mike Fennelly and Pat Hough. Those guys were great all year.”
Cal’s varsity 8+ just beat No. 1 Washington to the finish line, 5:23.89-5:24.16, to win the national title. It was the first time this season that the Bears defeated the Huskies in the varsity 8+.
“It was another epic battle and a great race,” Teti said. “I’m so proud of our guys. Both crews did well; they were racing at world-class speeds. We had the tailwind in our favor, and we executed well. We were 10 strokes behind, and then we were just able to get ahead of them at the end. It really came down to the last 15.”
Teti said the Cal rowers were wearing ribbons in honor of Cal women’s coxswain Jill Costello, who has been battling lung cancer since last June. He said the varsity 8+ was rowing today with Costello in their thoughts.
In the novice 8+, Cal almost picked up a second title. The Bears took second behind first-place Washington, 5:35.79-5:37.61. The Huskies also won the second varsity 8+ title (5:32.08). Cal placed sixth in that final (5:48.19).
Cal’s varsity 4+, the defending IRA champion, came in fourth with a time of 6:21.78 in the grand final. Washington won its third grand final of the day in the varsity 4+, posting a first-place time of 6:17.39.
Cal’s open 4+ boat placed fifth with a time of 6:26.23.
2010 California IRA Regatta Results – June 5
Varsity 8+ Grand Final
1. California 5:23.897, 2. Washington 5:24.160, 3. Cornell 5:30.356, 4. Harvard 5:31.106, 5. Brown 5:40.513, 6. Syracuse 5:43.902
Cal lineup: Nareg Guregian, Spencer Crowley, Olivier Siegelaar, Chris Yeager, Will Dean, James Long-Lerno, Samuel Walker, Sean Engel, Cox – Zachary Vlahos
Second Varsity 8+ Grand Final
1. Washington 5:32.083, 2. Brown 5:32.425, 3. Harvard 5:38.789, 4. Wisconsin 5:42.688, 5. Cornell 5:45.094, 6. California 5:48.192
Cal lineup: Nick Lucey, Goran Todorovic, Jovan Popovic, Calum Wright, Cam Gilham, Rob Poole, Nikola Zunic, Will Prioleau
Varsity 4+ Grand Final
1. Washington 6:17.395, 2. Georgetown 6:20.524, 3. Wisconsin 6:20.985, 4. California 6:21.788, 5. Stanford 6:25.708, 6. Brown 6:27.547
Cal lineup: Jack Farthing, Scott Goddard, Jordan Sartor, Jiean Li – Cox
Novice 8+ Grand Final
1. Washington 5:35.796, 2. California 5:37.615, 3. Princeton 5:38.094, 4. Cornell 5:38.291, 5. Harvard 5:41.979, 6. Stanford 5:51.216
Cal lineup: Isaac Holden, Jonathan Mcgraw-Bentley, Matt Dignan, Edward Williams, Christopher Caron-Marquis, Loren Brock, Cameron Klotz, Cox – Chelsea Lucas
Open 4+ Grand Final
1. Cornell 6:16.781, 2. Wisconsin 6:21.733, 3. Washington 6:22.862, 4. Brown 6:24.731, 5. California 6:26.230, 6. Oregon State 6:32.510
Cal lineup: Christopher DeRenzi, Patrick Williams, Michael Shenk, Jonathan Hoon – Cox
