SEATTLE – The sun was shining and so were the Huskies, as both the men's and women's varsity eights set Montlake Cut 2,000 meter course records to claim the Windermere Cup over the men's and women's Shanghai High-Performance rowing teams. Washington also took home the Erickson Cascade Cup in the men's and women's races with open-water victories.

The crowd was electric and racing conditions were perfect at the 2017 Windermere Cup. Washington ultimately swept all 10 collegiate races on the day with open water victories in each race.

"This is a group that is really now maturing and finding speed in a lot of places," said men's head coach Michael Callahan. "Our hard work that we put in during the winter is really starting to pay off. It is a really fun group to coach right now with all the progress we are making."

"The energy in the boathouse this morning was awesome," said women's head coach Yasmin Farooq. "Everybody loves this race. We are fortunate to have our final race of the season on a venue where the fans love rowing—and where they are actually knowledgeable about our sport. It really sends the seniors, and our whole team, into the post-season knowing that we have an entire community behind us."

The Washington men's varsity eight time of 5:27.48 broke a 20-year-old Montlake Cut course record set by Washington in the 1997 Cal Dual (5:30.0).

"We got to show the crowd a really fast race," added Callahan. "This is a hard place to go fast. The water is cold and it is usually windy. But todaywe had great conditions and I think we were primed to have a good race." 

The Washington women's varsity eight also set a new Montlake Cut course record with a time of 6:07.03, beating the 30-year-old record set by the Soviet Union National Team in the inaugural Windermere Cup (6:11.73) in 1987.

"I had no idea that we broke the record or that it had been in place for so long." said Farooq. "However, I will say that we had two highly motivated eights that were on the course today. So they were throwing everything they had at it."

Washington's performance today gives them confidence heading into post-season next week with the Pac-12 Championships.

"We expect that the Pac-12 Championships will be the most competitive conference championship in the country." added Farooq. "I feel good about our progress as a team and we'll bring our best."

Here is a break down of each race from the 2017 Windermere Cup, with races numbered by event:

10. Men's Windermere Cup
By 500 meters, the University of Washington men's varsity eight, coxed by senior Stuart Sim, was up three seconds on the men from Shanghai. The Huskies continued to excel, and by 1,500 meters they were up by a dominating 19 seconds. UW finished first with a time of 5:27.480 - a new course record on the Montlake Cut. The Chinese boat finished with a time of 5:54.368.

"Doing this with the people that are in this boat is what makes it that much more special." said men's captain Arne Landboe. "We had a great week of practice. We had some new guys, some fresh blood in the eight and it really really worked out for us."

9. Women's Windermere Cup
UW's first varsity eight advanced quickly; by 500 meters they were up by a half boat length over the UW second varsity eight and almost a boat length over the Shanghai crew. Washington's first varsity, which was stroked by Chiara Ondoli, continued to build its lead and, by 1,500 meters, the Huskies were up by eight seconds on UW's second varsity, coxed by Isabella Corriere. UW's first varsity eight finished first with a time of 6:07.030, a new course record on the Montlake Cut. UW's second varsity eight finished second with a time of 6:18.126 and China placed third with a time of 6:37.230.

"Today's performance was a fantastic show of depth that the program holds," said Jessica Thoennes. "Racing China was a great preparation for the upcoming challenges we face in the next few weeks, and we are excited to use this as a springboard to move forward."

8. Men's Cascade Cup 8+
Both UW boats got off to a quick start, placing them in first and second place early on in the race. By 500 meters, UW's second varsity eight, coxed by Rielly Milne, was in the lead but was closely followed by UW's third varsity eight. UW's 2V8+ finished first with a time of 5:39.455 and UW's 3V8+ finished second with a time of 5:42.247. UCSB and Oregon State finished third and fourth, respectively.

7. Women's Cascade Cup 8+
UW's third varsity eight, with Jennifer Wren in the stroke seat and Jalyn Stinardo in the bow, advanced quickly off the start line, taking the lead over Western Washington by the 500 meter mark. UW finished in first place with a time of 6:30.189 leaving NCAA Division II No. 1-ranked Western Washington to finish second with a time of 6:49.437.

6. Men's Collegiate F8+/3V8+
Both UW Freshman boats excelled placing them in first and second place early on. By 1,000 meters, the first freshman 8+ was up by six seconds over the second UW freshman 8+. UW's first freshman 8+ finished on top with a time of 5:51.948, UW's second freshman 8+ finished second with a time of 6:01.932.

5. Women's Collegiate 3V8+
Washington's fourth varsity eight, who was racing against other schools third varsity eights, battled closely with Pacific Lutheran University at the start, however, by 1,000 meters the Huskies were up by a boat length. Washington finished first with a time of 6:45.107; Pacific Lutheran University finished in second, Seattle University finished third, and Western Washington placed fourth.

4. Men's Collegiate Open 8+
By 500 meters Washington's men's collegiate 8+ was up by four seconds over the UC Santa Barbara eight. The Huskies maintained the lead, finishing with a time of 5:51.557. UCSB finished second with a time of 6:04.245, and Oregon State (third place) and Western Washington (fourth place) finished closely behind.

3. Women's Collegiate Open 8+
The Husky eight led the entire race, crossing the finish line with open water. By 1,000 meters the Huskies were up by 16 seconds over Seattle Pacific. UW finished in first place with a time of 6:35.305. Seattle Pacific, Seattle University, and Western Washington finished in that order.

2. Women's Collegiate 4+
In the women's varsity 4+, UW started the race with great speed and maintained the lead throughout the race. By 1,500 meters the Huskies were up by 30 seconds. The University of Washington finished first with a time of 6:55.684, leaving Western Washington to finish second and Seattle University third.

1. Men's Open 4+
The day commenced with the men's open 4+. By 500 meters, Washington was in the lead by half a boat length. The Huskies maintained the lead throughout the race, finishing with a time of 6:18.156. UC Davis took second place over UCSB (third place) and Seattle University (fourth place).

Up Next
Washington will head south to Lake Natoma to compete in the Pac-12 Championships on Sunday, May 14^th.