COUGAR ROWING BACK IN ACTION AT CLEMSON INVITE: No. 15 Washington State rowing faces a talented pool of ranked competition as it heads to the sixth-annual Clemson Invitational, Saturday, April 14 and Sunday, April 15 on Lake Hartwell at Clemson, S.C.

THE 2018 CLEMSON INVITATIONAL: The sixth-annual Clemson Invitational features a field of 21 teams...the schools are seeded into heats across two sessions, Saturday, and those performances will decide placement for final heats, Sunday...Sunday's results will determine a champion, as well as each school's final team placing...racing will take place over a 2,000-meter course at Lake Hartwell...the Cougars' varsity eight will kick off WSU's racing Saturday at 5:38 a.m. PT/8:38 a.m. ET...the field features top-ranked programs including; No.4 Ohio State, No.9 Virginia, No.13 USC, No.17 Indiana, No.18 Syracuse, and No.20 Oklahoma...four of the participating schools are receiving votes in this week's USRowing/CRCA top-20 poll...official results will be tweeted at @ClemsonRowing as they become available.

LAST SEASON AT THE CLEMSON INVITATIONAL: Then-No. 14 Washington State defeated four ranked teams to place fourth as a team at the 2017 Clemson Invite...WSU's second varsity eight and varsity four won their 'B' Finals and the varsity eight placed third in its 'A' Final...Washington State finished with 105 total points, 60 points for third in the varsity eight, 30 for the second varsity eight and 15 for the varsity four...No. 5 Texas won the team championship with 130 points, followed by No. 4 Ohio State in second (125 points) and No. 11 Wisconsin in third (117 points)...No. 10 Virginia also compiled 105 points, but fell to fifth, with WSU placing higher in the varsity eight race.

WSU HEAD COACH JANE LARIVIERE ON THE CLEMSON INVITATIONAL: "This is a big event for us, we get to measure ourselves against strong conferences like the ACC, Big Ten, and the SEC. This is an important time for us because the Pac-12 is so strong, and from that we can lose sight of how we're performing. So it's good to go get some close racing, as we learn more about the team and hopefully get a few wins...we've been at the Clemson Invite for four years now and it's been engrained into our routine."

COUGARS RANKED 15TH IN USROWING/CRCA PRESEASON POLL: WSU is ranked 15th in the nation in this week's USRowing/Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association (CRCA) Division I Coaches Poll presented by Pocock Racing Shells, released April 11...Washington State's No. 15 ranking keeps it in the nation's top-15 for a 32nd-consecutive week dating back to March 25, 2015...overall, WSU has been ranked in the top-20 for 100-consecutive weeks, dating back to June 11, 2008...five of the seven Pac-12 rowing teams are ranked in the top-20 poll, Washington-first, California-second, Stanford-seventh, USC-13th, and WSU-15th…UCLA (12) and Oregon State (4) are receiving votes.  

COACHING STAFF: Jane LaRiviere is in her 16th year as head coach of the WSU rowing program...as a team, the Cougars have raced in 11 NCAA Championships and five-straight under LaRiviere...she is joined by associate head coach Karl Huhta, assistant/novice coach Brandon Campbell, coordinator of operations Amy Van Buskirk, and graduate assistant Dave Kempsell...Huhta is in his fourth year with the Cougars, and first year as associate head coach…Campbell is in his third year and first as novice coach…Van Buskirk and Kempsell are each in their first year with the Cougars.

NEXT FOR THE COUGARS: After a weekend off, the Cougars will head to Spokane, Saturday, April 28 to face Gonzaga at Silver Lake...the regatta will mark the final tune up for WSU before the 2018 Pac-12 Championships, May 13.