GOLD RIVER, Calif. – For the third-straight year, No. 14 Washington State University rowing finished in the top-four of the conference as it placed fourth at the 2017 Pac-12 Rowing Championships, Sunday, under good conditions at Lake Natoma near Sacramento, Calif.

Washington State finished ahead of its seed in the varsity eight race, finishing fourth, tying its best finish since 2008 when it placed third. In the team scoring, No. 1 Washington snapped No. 2 California's two-year winning-streak, capturing the Pac-12 title by sweeping all four events to finish with 45.5 points, for its first title since 2003. The second-ranked Golden Bears placed second in every event for 39 points, followed by No. 8 Stanford in third with 31.5 points. For the second-straight year, the 14th-ranked Cougars placed fourth as they finished with 23.5 points, 7.5 points ahead of fifth-place and No. 15 USC with 16 points. No. 20 UCLA finished sixth with 14 points, followed by Oregon State rounding out the Pac-12 competitors in seventh with 11 points. 

"The varsity eight showed a lot of heart today," LaRiviere said. "They raced with a lot of passion and were able to squeeze ahead of USC in the closing meters. It was a super exciting race. The second varsity eight was solid. If we get the chance to race at NCAAs, I think we can squeeze a little more speed out of them. The varsity four was a new combination and I am pretty sure if given the chance, they will benefit from some more water time. The third varsity eight is a relatively inexperienced boat and they learned a lot today. All in all, it was a solid effort by everyone." 

The Cougars entered the final event of the day, the varsity eight race, with a half a point lead over UCLA and a 4.5 point lead over USC. Seeded fifth in the race behind California, Washington, Stanford and USC. Washington State (coxswain-Jenna Mangiagli, stroke-Emily Morrow, Mihaela-Teodora Berindei, Ieva Adomaviciute, Lucie Weissova, Nicole Hare, Isabella Watt, Kristel Tohu, bow-Paige Danielson), which finished behind USC's varsity eight when the two boats met at the San Diego Crew Classic in early April, was able to pull ahead of USC in the final meters and edge-out the Trojans by 0.17 seconds to finish fourth at 6:21.87, as the Trojans clocked a time of 6:22.04. The Cougars earned 12 points for their fourth-place finish. Washington won the race by four seconds, finishing in 6:11.64, followed by California (6:15.40) and Stanford (6:19.58). 

The WSU second varsity eight crew (coxswain-Ellie Burg, stroke-Chloe Rogers, Renee Kemp, Jessi Howe, Ivy Elling Quaintance, Emily Thomson, Lori VerMurlen, Kamila Ondrackova, bow-Taija Thompson) entered the third WSU event of the day seeded fourth. The Cougars were able to hold off the Bruins and finish a second ahead of them, staying true to their seed at fourth with a time of 6:39.59 for eight points. UCLA clocked a time of 6:40.75 for fifth. Washington won in a time of 6:18.05, followed by California (6:20.35) and Stanford (6:28.93). 

The Cougar varsity four (coxswain-Madeleine Binghams, Rosalina Torcivia, Sue Yu, Jenna Kennedy, bow-Brittany Brooks), seeded fifth, was just beat out by UCLA by 0.21 seconds, as WSU finished sixth with a time of 7:23.94, earning two points. UCLA crossed the finish line in a time of 7:23.73. Washington finished in 6:53.03 for first, followed by California (6:56.40), USC (7:10.04) and Stanford (7:12.80).

WSU's third varsity eight (coxswain-Hannah Welzbacker, stroke-Jill Hannink, Grace Arnis, Emily Vandegrift, Mahal Johnson, Madeleine Bingham, Sara Brevick, Miranda Armstrong, bow-Hunter Jones) came into the race seeded fourth in the five-boat race. UCLA out-stroked the Cougars by just over three seconds as WSU finished fifth with a time of 6:53.53 for 1.5 points. Washington won at 6:21.72, followed by California (6:24.73), Stanford (6:47.68) and UCLA (6:53.25). 


Pac-12 Championship
Sunday, May 14, 2017
Final Results

Women's Team Scores
1. No. 1 Washington, 45.5
2. No. 2 California, 39
3. No. 8 Stanford, 31.5
4. No. 14 Washington State, 23.5
5. No. 15 USC, 16
6. No. 20 UCLA, 14
7. Oregon State, 11

Women's Varsity Eight
1. Washington, 6:11.64 (21)
2. California, 6:15.40 (18)
3. Stanford, 6:19.58 (15)
4. Washington State, 6:21.87(12)
5. USC, 6:22.04 (9)
6. Oregon State, 6:35.13 (6)
7. UCLA, 6:38.80 (3)

Washington State's Varsity Eight Lineup
coxswain-Jenna Mangiagli 
stroke-Emily Morrow
7-Mihaela-Teodora Berindei
6-Ieva Adomaviciute
5-Lucie Weissova
4-Nicole Hare
3- Isabella Watt
2-Kristel Tohu
bow-Paige Danielson

Women's Second Varsity Eight
1. Washington, 6:18.05 (14)
2. California, 6:20.35 (12)
3. Stanford, 6:28.93 (10)
4. Washington State, 6:39.59 (8)
5. UCLA, 6:40.75 (6)
6. Oregon State, 6:44.92 (4)
7. USC, 6:46.68 (2)

Washington State's Second Varsity Eight Lineup 
coxswain-Ellie Burg
stroke-Chloe Rogers
7-Renee Kemp
6-Jessi Howe
5-Ivy Elling Quaintance
4-Emily Thomson
3-Lori VerMurlen
2-Kamila Ondrackova
bow-Taija Thompson

Women's Varsity Four
1. Washington, 6:53.03 (7)
2. California, 6:56.40 (6)
3. USC, 7:110.04 (5)
4. Stanford, 7:12.80 (4)
5. UCLA, 7:23.73 (3)
6. Washington State, 7:23.94 (2)
7. Oregon State, 7:44.44 (1)

Washington State's Varsity Four Lineup 
coxswain-Mikaelyn Davis
4-Rosalina Torcivia
3-Sue Yu
2-Jenna Kennedy
bow-Brittany Brooks

Women's Third Varsity Eight
1. Washington, 6:21.72 (3.5)
2. California, 6:24.73 (3)
3. Stanford, 6:47.68 (2.5)
4. UCLA, 6:53.25 (2)
5. Washington State, 6:56.53 (1.5)

Washington State's Third Varsity Eight Lineup
coxswain-Hannah Welzbacker
stroke-Jill Hannink
7-Grace Arnis
6-Emily Vandegrift
5-Mahal Johnson
4-Madeleine Bingham
3-Sara Brevick
2-Miranda Armstrong
bow-Hunter Jones