Rowing Advances to Grand Finals at San Diego

SAN DIEGO – The No. 11 Washington State women's rowing team advanced all four boats to their respective Grand Finals in day one of the San Diego Crew Classic, Saturday morning at Mission Bay.

Head Coach Jane LaRiviere said, “It was a solid day in many respects. It's good to have all of the boats through to the Grand Finals. We are going to have to be faster tomorrow.”

In the first women's flight of the morning, WSU's varsity eight (coxswain- Rebecca Burns, stroke- Morgan Cathrea, Jordan Watson, Mihaela-Teodora Berindei, Savannah Davison, Kim Coon, Emily Thomson, Isabella Watt, bow- Emily Morrow) took third in flight A of the Women's Collegiate Varsity Invitational with a time of 6:44.302. The Cougar women finished less than eight seconds behind No. 2 California (6:36.392) and the first place finisher, No. 13 Wisconsin (6:36.342). Behind the Cougars were No. 18 Gonzaga (6:46.376) and British Columbia (6:53.946). Washington State, California and Wisconsin will compete in the Grand Final on Sunday at 10 a.m. against USC, Texas, UCLA, Gonzaga and San Diego.

The Cougar women's varsity four (coxswain- Ellie Burg, Codi Swenson, Kotryna Lasaite, Jenna Kennedy, bow-Lori VerMurlen) took second in the Women's Collegiate Varsity Four Heat C. USC (7:37.171), ranked 14th nationally, finished just one second ahead of WSU (7:38.463). Tennessee finished eight seconds behind WSU with a time of 7:46.965. Washington State and USC will compete Sunday in the Grand Final at 11:44 a.m. against California, Texas, San Diego and UCLA.

In the third event, WSU's second varsity eight (coxswain- Jenna Mangiagli, stroke- Jessica Brougham, Taija Thompson, Chloe Rogers, Sarah Steger, Jessi Howe, Lucie Weissova, Jessica Newson, bow- Brittany Brooks) finished second in the Women's Collegiate Second Varsity Heat C. The Cougars finished in 6:59.439, one second behind No. 14 USC (6:58.275). Washington State and USC advance to the Grand Final at 9:36 a.m. Sunday against California, Texas, Wisconsin and Gonzaga.

To close the day for the Cougars, the novice eight (coxswain- Taylor Brown, stroke- Sara Brevick, Sheena Polman, Paige Danielson, Megan Lee, Grace Arnis, Katie Weir, Colleen Gibbons, bow- Kaisha Davis) placed second with a time of 7:25.683. No. 9 Texas took the win with a time of 7:11.874 and No. 20 UCLA finished third with a time of 7:31.509. All three of these boats advance to the Grand Final Sunday at 9:12 a.m. against Minnesota, San Diego, UC San Diego and Santa Clara.

The WSU women's rowing team will continue racing at the San Diego Crew Classic Sunday, April 3. The first flight of the day begins at 7:20 a.m.

Women's Collegiate Varsity Invitational Heat A
1. Wisconsin, 6:36.342
2. California, 6:36.392
3. Washington State, 6:44.302
4. Gonzaga, 6:46.376
5. British Columbia, 6:53.946

WSU Varsity Eight Lineup
coxswain-Rebecca Burns
stroke-Morgan Cathrea
7-Jordan Watson
6-Mihaela-Teodora Berindei
5-Savannah Davison
4-Kim Coon
3-Emily Thomson
2-Isabella Watt
bow-Emily Morrow

Women's Collegiate Varsity Four Heat C
1. USC, 7:37.171
2. Washington State, 7:38.463
3. Tennessee, 7:46.965
4. Sacramento State, 7:59.015
5. Humboldt State, 8:32.221

WSU Varsity Four Lineup
coxswain-Ellie Burg
4-Codi Swenson
3-Kotryna Lasaite
2-Jenna Kennedy
bow-Lori VerMurlen

Women's Collegiate Second Varsity Heat C
1. USC, 6:58.275
2. Washington State, 6:59.439
3. Tennessee, 7:03.183
4. British Columbia, 7:09.985
5. Fordham, 7:24.914
6. Loyola Marymount, 7:27.754

WSU Second Varsity Eight Lineup
coxswain-Jenna Mangiagli
stroke-Jessica Brougham
7-Taija Thompson
6-Chloe Rogers
5-Sarah Steger
4-Jessi Howe
3-Lucie Weissova
2-Jessica Newson
bow-Brittany Brooks

Women's Collegiate Novice Prelim
1. Texas, 7:11.874
2. Washington State, 7:25.683
3. UCLA, 7:31.509
4. Minnesota, 7:33.472
5. San Diego, 7:49.507
6. UC San Diego, 8:12.350
7. Santa Clara, 8:44.299

WSU Novice Eight Lineup
coxswain-Taylor Brown
stroke-Sara Brevick
7-Sheena Polman
6-Paige Danielson
5-Megan Lee
4-Grace Arnis
3-Katie Weir
2-Colleen Gibbons
bow-Kaisha Davis