HENDERSON, Nev. – The Washington men's and women's rowing teams opened the 2019 season with a clean sweep of victories on a rainy Saturday morning on Lake Las Vegas.
 
The No. 2-ranked Washington women's team won all three of its races (varsity eight, second varsity eight and varsity four) against No. 12 USC. Meanwhile the Husky men, also ranked No. 2, won two races vs. Cornell and came back to win two more, against Oregon State and Marist, winning the varsity eight and second varsity eight races in both cases.
 
The UW men got their regatta underway with a pair of wins over 12th-ranked Cornell. First, the second varsity eight, coxed by Kimmons Wilson and stroked by Peter Lancashire, turned in a solid finish time of 5:42.26, breaking from a tight race early on to win by several lengths. Cornell crossed the line in 5:54.70.
 
Washington also won the varsity eight race over the Big Red. The UW boat, with sophomore coxswain Adam Gold and stroke rower Samuel Halbert, never trailed, stretching a open-water lead of less than a length at the 1,000-meter mark to several lengths at the finish, with a time of 5:36.58. Cornell's time was 5:49.90.


 
After a short break, the two Husky crews returned to the water to race against No. 18 Oregon State and No. 25 Marist.
 
In the second varsity eight race, Washington jumped out to the lead and rowed to a dominant victory, leading by several lengths by the 1,000-meter mark. Behind them, the Beavers and Red Foxes had a good fight for second place. While the Huskies finished well ahead of the other two, with a time of 5:54.93, OSU (6:21.43) held of Marist (6:26.05) for second.
 
The Huskies' final race of the day, the men's varsity eight against Marist and Oregon State, finished in similar fashion to the 2V8 as Washington established its lead early on and raced to a convincing victory. The UW eight finished in 5:42.93, with the Beavers once again taking second, in a time of 6:01.49. Marist finished third, in 6:10.84.
 
"We couldn't ask for any better way to start the 2019 collegiate racing season: nationally ranked competitors from the east coast at an promising new venue," UW men's coach Michael Callahan said. "We are excited to see this racing weekend grow in the future; a neutral site that has all the amenities to become a rowing oasis in early spring. It's good for our guys to remember why we train so hard. They are racers and it's fun to get on the starting line today."


 
The races had been moved to earlier in the day and the schedule was tightened in an attempt to avoid bad weather. At 7:00 a.m. PT, the regatta got started with the women's fours, where the two UW entries finished first and second, ahead of USC. The four coxed by junior Dana Brooks and stroked by junior Rachel McGlothlen led the way across the finish line with a time of 7:38.37, with about a length of open water back to the second UW four (7:45.97). USC finished several lengths back of the second Husky shell, in 8:02.54.
 
Washington's second varsity eight followed suit with a win in its race. With coxswain Isabella Corriere and stroke Skylar Jacobson, the Husky shell rowed to a convincing victory over the Women of Troy, winning with a time of 6:30.06. USC's time was 6:48.14.
 
The women's varsity eight race was very close in the early going as the Huskies crossed the 500-meter mark just a couple of seats ahead of USC. By the halfway point, UW cox Marley Avritt and stroke Marlee Blue had stretched the lead to a length, though the Trojans remained within striking distance.
 
In the third 500 meters, the Huskies continued to steadily and consistently increase their lead. In the end, the UW won the race with a time of 6:25.24, about two-thirds of a length of open water in front of USC (6:31.50).

"Thanks to USC for continuing this early season tradition," UW women's head coach Yasmin Farooq said. "We certainly got what we came for: a full, 2,000-meter pull on a fair, buoyed course. The unexpected rain shower felt just like Seattle and had us all feeling right at home.
 
"We really enjoy the hospitality of the Lake Las Vegas community," Farooq continued. "This year they surprised all of the teams with a delicious pre-race athletes' meal prepared by Executive Chef Scott Commings, the winner of Season 12 of the TV show 'Hell's Kitchen.' That's not something you would expect to experience at a rowing regatta. But then again, 'It's Vegas, Baby.' We're looking forward to coming back next April."


NEXT UP: The Huskies host the 118th Annual Class Day Regatta March 23 on Montlake Cut. The next intercollegiate racing for the women comes at the San Diego Crew Classic, April 6-7. The men's next action after Class Day is the Husky Open, March 30 in Seattle.
 
WASHINGTON MEN'S LINEUPS:
 
VARSITY 8+ (vs. Cornell)
Cox: Adam Gold (Seattle, Wash./Seattle Academy)
Stroke: Samuel Halbert (Redmond, Wash./Woodinville)
7: Elijah Maesner (Duvall, Wash./Eastlake)
6: Andrew Gaard (Madison, Wis./West)
5: Gert-Jan van Doorn (Zoeterwoude, Netherlands)
4: Simon van Dorp (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
3: Ben Davison (Inverness, Fla./Citrus)
2: Philipp Nonnast (Frankfurt am Main, Germany)
Bow: Michiel Mantel (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
 
VARSITY 8+ (vs. Oregon State & Marist)
Cox: Adam Gold (Seattle, Wash./Seattle Academy)
Stroke: Samuel Halbert (Redmond, Wash./Woodinville)
7: Gert-Jan van Doorn (Zoeterwoude, Netherlands)
6: Philipp Nonnast (Frankfurt am Main, Germany)
5: Michiel Mantel (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
4: Simon van Dorp (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
3: Ben Davison (Inverness, Fla./Citrus)
2: Andrew Gaard (Madison, Wis./West)
Bow: Elijah Maesner (Duvall, Wash./Eastlake)
 
SECOND VARSITY 8+ (same for both races)
Cox: Kimmons Wilson (Orlando, Fla./Winter Park)
Stroke: Peter Lancashire (Victoria, B.C. Canada/Brentwood)
7: Madison Molitor (Moses Lake, Wash./Moses Lake)
6: David Bridges (Portland, Ore./Jesuit)
5: Chris Carlson (Bedford, N.H./Brewster Academy)
4: Nick Everett (Brockville, Ont., Canada/Brockville Collegiate)
3: George Esau (Long Lake, Minn./Orono)
2: Harvey Kay (Nottingham, U.K.)
Bow: Chase Deitner (Perth. Australia)
 
WASHINGTON WOMEN'S LINEUPS:
 
VARSITY 8+
Cox: Marley Avritt (Newport Beach, Calif./Newport Harbor)
Stroke: Marlee Blue (Seattle, Wash./Holy Names Academy)
7: Tabea Schendekehl (Dortmund, Germany)
6: Carmela Pappalardo (Salerno, Italy)
5: Teal Cohen (Dallas, Texas/The Hockaday School)
4: Klara Grube (Lübeck, Germany)
3: Molly Gallaher (Snoqualmie, Wash./Skyline)
2: Valentina Iseppi (Gardone Riviera, Italy)
Bow: Calina Schanze (Behlendorf, Germany)
 
SECOND VARSITY 8+
Cox: Isabella Corriere (Montclair, N.J./Montclair)
Stroke: Skylar Jacobson (Lakewood, Wash./Steilacoom)
7: Lark Skov (Steamboat Springs, Colo./Steamboat Springs)
6: Jennifer Wren (Seattle, Wash./Bishop Blanchet)
5: Ella Cossill (Gold Coast, New Zealand)
4: Dimitra Tsamopoulou (Athens, Greece)
3: Mackenna Cameron (Seattle, Wash./Chief Sealth)
2: Elise Beuke (Sequim, Wash./Sequim)
Bow: Emma Vagen (Kent, Wash./Kentwood)
 
VARSITY 4+
Cox: Dana Brooks (Tiburon, Calif./Redwood)
Stroke: Rachel McGlothlen (Spokane, Wash./West Valley)
3: Ava Trogus (Oak Park, Ill./Oak Park and River Forest)
2: Laurel Safranek (Anchorage, Alaska/West Anchorage)
Bow: Jenna Phillips (Dayton, Wash./Dayton)
 
VARSITY 4+
Cox: Amanda Durkin (Hingham, Mass./Hingham)
Stroke: Ellie Bruce (Snoqualmie, Wash./Mount Si)
3: Taylor Buell (Olympia, Wash./Capital)
2: Marguerite Trost (Nashville, Tenn./The Harpeth Hall School)
Bow: Denise Devlyn (Austin, Texas/St. Stephen's Episcopal)