REDWOOD CITY, Calif. – Washington's No. 1-ranked women's rowing team won four out of five races Saturday against No. 2 California, but the Bears took home the Simpson Cup with a win in the varsity eight race.
 
Combined, Washington's men's and women's team won eight out of 10 races against Cal on Saturday. The UW women won the second and third varsity eights, the freshman eight and the varsity four.
 
"The racing was excellent," Washington head coach Yasmin Farooq said. "We're all really proud of the Frosh for racing from six seats down to an open water win. Then the 3V8 backed that up with another one. It's awesome to see our younger rowers stepping up. They are our future.
 
"We expected to see some great racing in the NCAA events and we got it," she added. "I'm proud of the varsity four and second varsity eights for bringing home solid wins today."
 
"Today was a testament of our team's depth," said senior captain Karle Pittsinger (Chelan, Wash.), who rowed in the five seat in the victorious second varsity eight." As we move into the next part of our season, I know all Dawgs will be pushing one another. I couldn't be more excited to see what the Women of Washington will accomplish this coming month."
 
In a fast varsity eight race, the Cal women held the lead by two seats 1,000 meters into the race, but then extended it to a lead and held off Washington's charge to beat the Huskies by more than three seconds, the UW varsity eight's first loss of the season. Cal crossed the line in 6:05.2, while Washington, coxed by senior Phoebe Marks-Nicholes, finished in 6:08.5.
 
"Congratulations to Cal for raising the bar in the varsity eight," Farooq said. "They earned the win and really pushed us."
 
The Huskies' second varsity eight won its race in steady fashion, beating Cal by about a length. The UW boat, led by coxswain Marley Avritt and stroke Valentina Iseppi, won by more than three seconds, 6:19.1 to 6:22.4.
 
Washington's varsity four fell behind Cal in the early stages, but moved in front and led most of the way, taking a slight, open-water advantage 1,000 meters into the 2K race. The Huskies, coxed by Madison Mariani and stroked by Chiara Ondoli, essentially maintained that advantage the rest of the way, winning the race by just over a length, 6:58.6 to 7:02.1
 
The Huskies' third varsity eight, with coxswain Amanda Durkin and stroke seat Tommie De Rooij, led throughout and had an open-water lead before the halfway mark. Cal managed to close the gap some down the stretch, but Washington (6:26.7) still won by open water as Cal finished in 6:34.5.
 
Washington opened the morning with a victory in the freshman eights, pulling away in the second half for an open-water victory after having trailed in the early-going. The boat, which included six freshmen from the state of Washington and coxed by Olympia's Maddy Cope, won in a time of 6:41.3, to Cal's 6:51.1.
 
Up Next
After a weekend off, the UW rowing teams return to action at the Windermere Cup/Opening Day regatta May 5. The Washington women will square off with the Dutch National Team, finalists at the 2017 World Championships, while the men take on the reigning collegiate champions from Great Britain (Oxford Brooks University) and Canada (University of British Columbia).
 
UW Women's Lineups
 
VARSITY 8+
Cox: Phoebe Marks-Nicholes (Seattle, Wash./Ballard)
Stroke: Brooke Pierson (Oak Harbor, Wash./West Potomac (Va.))
7: Tabea Schendekehl (Dortmund, Germany)
6: Brooke Mooney (Peru, Vt./Vermont Academy)
5: Sofia Asoumanaki (Athens, Greece)
4: Marlee Blue (Seattle, Wash./Holy Names Academy)
3: Elise Beuke (Sequim, Wash./Sequim)
2: Jessica Thoennes (Highlands Ranch, Colo./Mountain Vista)
Bow: Katy Gillingham (Seattle, Wash./Holy Names Academy)
 
SECOND VARSITY 8+
Cox: Marley Avritt (Newport Beach, Calif./Newport Harbor)
Stroke: Valentina Iseppi (Gardone Riviera, Italy)
7: Calina Schanze (Behlendorf, Germany)
6: Carmela Pappalardo (Salerno, Italy)
5: Karlé Pittsinger (Lake Chelan, Wash./Lake Chelan)
4: Klara Grube (Lübeck, Germany)
3: Jennifer Wren (Seattle, Wash./Bishop Blanchet)
2: Emma Vagen (Kent, Wash./Kentwood)
Bow: Anna Thornton (Nottingham, U.K.)
 
VARSITY 4+
Stroke: Chiara Ondoli (Angera, Italy)
3: Sara Clark (Newport Beach, Calif./Corona del Mar)
2: Kenzie Waltar (Kirkland, Wash./Juanita)
Bow: Julia Paulsen (Seattle, Wash./The Bush School)
Cox: Madison Mariani (Snoqualmie, Wash./Mount Si)
 
THIRD VARSITY 8+
Cox: Amanda Durkin (Hingham, Mass./Hingham)
Stroke: Tommie De Rooij (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
7: Skylar Jacobson (Lakewood, Wash./Steilacoom)
6: Anna Porteous (Kingston upon Thames, U.K.)
5: Molly Gallaher (Sammamish, Wash./Skyline)
4: Adele Likin (Seattle, Wash./Roosevelt)
3: Sophie Anderson-Kundig (San Francisco, Calif./Sacred Heart)
2: Lark Skov (Steamboat Springs, Colo./Steamboat Springs)
Bow: Meg Rutherford (Seattle, Wash./Holy Names Academy)
 
FRESHMAN 8+
Cox: Maddy Cope (Olympia, Wash./Olympia)
Stroke: Ellie Bruce (Snoqualmie, Wash./Mount Si)
7: Paige West (Spokane, Wash./Riverside)
6: Teal Cohen (Dallas, Texas/The Hockaday School)
5: Taylor Buell (Olympia, Wash./Capital)
4: Holly Drapp (Tampa, Fla./Strawberry Crest)
3: Jenna Phillips (Dayton, Wash./Dayton)
2: Elizabeth Benson (Oakland, Calif./Bishop O'Dowd)
Bow: Téa Federspiel (Bellevue, Wash./Bellevue)