SAN DIEGO – The No. 5-ranked Washington women's rowing team won two races and finished second in four others Sunday on the final day of the San Diego Crew Classic, on Mission Bay.
 
Washington beat No. 1-ranked Texas in the final of the Karen Plumleigh Cortney Cup, for varsity four crews. The Huskies also won the B fours event, with a pair of UW entries taking the top two spots in that race.
 
The Huskies finished second to Texas in the varsity eights, second varsity eights and open eights finals, and second to USC in the novice eight race. Washington sent its "Big Ten Championships" lineup of crews to San Diego, as the Big Ten regatta includes seven boats: first and second varsity eights, first and second novice eights, and three fours.

"We got exactly what we came here for: tight early season racing at a big event regatta," said UW head coach Yasmin Farooq. "The next time we'll have that opportunity with all seven Big Ten lineups will be at the Big Ten championships.
 
"We were really glad for the opportunity to race Cal in both the heat and the final and were excited and ready for some side-by-side action with Texas," Farooq noted. "The first and second varsity eights had strong races with many positive takeaways. The varsity four win was definitely gratifying. What a scrappy race!"

In the Huskies' first race of the day, the final for the Jessop/Whittier Cup, for varsity eights, UW went to the front along with Texas and Cal, well clear of the other eight boats in the final.
 
Eventually, Texas and UW pulled away from Cal, with the Longhorns remaining a deck-length in front of the Huskies throughout the final portion of the race. After Texas threatened to add to their lead, UW responded, making up seats in the final few strokes. 
 
The No. 1-ranked Longhorns crossed the finish line in 6:19.318, about two seats and about seven-tenths of a second in front of Washington (6:20.139).
 
Next, Washington rowed against a similar, eight-boat field for the Karen Plumleigh Cortney Cup, for varsity fours. From the start, USC moved out to a lead over Washington and Texas in the first 500 meters. USC's lead was short-lived, however, as both the Huskies and Longhorns quickly rowed past the Trojan four, making it a two-boat race before 1,000 meters. 
 
In the final 500, UW moved into the lead and successfully held off each Texas challenge. The Huskies won the race in 7:06.145, a little over a second ahead of the Longhorns (7:07.209). Washington last won the Karen Plumleigh Cortney Cup in 2019.

"We all fully trusted each other that when one of us went for it that all of the rest of us would go for it with them, no matter what," said Ava Mueleman, the stroke rower in the four. "Our goal was to do that all the way down the course and especially in the start and last 500 meters. I think we executed well and developed even more trust as a boat. Our heat race felt like a great base to build and improve off of, and the final helped that momentum build even more, and really has us feeling hungry for speed we can find this season."

In the second varsity eight final, for the Jackie Ann Hungness Stitt Cup, it was once again UW and Texas who moved to the early lead, with Cal a relatively close third. As in the previous finals, the Huskies and Horns separated themselves and fought one another down the stretch.

After Texas had threatened to move away, the Huskies responded and closed on the 'Horns as they came to the finish line. Texas held on to win by about half of a boat length, in a time of 6:29.739, to Washington's 6:31.341.
 
Next for the Huskies was defense of the Laurel Korholz Perpetual Trophy – the women's novice eight final – which UW had won the previous three years in a row. That final featured five crews, including Big Ten rivals USC and UCLA, with UW racing it second novice eight crew.
 
In the first half of the race, USC was able to establish an open-water lead over UW and the rest of the field. 
 
The Trojans won the race in 6:56.098, with Washington crossing in second place, in 7:06.492.
 
The open eights race, for the Carley Copley Cup, included crews from UW (the Huskies' first novice eight), Texas and Cal, setting up for another strong final. The Longhorns quickly established a significant lead, with UW and California left to battle for second place. 
 
Washington did cut significantly into Texas' lead, making up open water to overlap with the Longhorns' stern at the finish. Texas won in 6:44.655, while Washington beat Cal for second, in 6:48.141.
 
The Huskies' final race of the day included two UW fours in the B fours final, with a field of eight entries (also including two each from UCLA and Notre Dame).
 
UW's two crews moved to the front, along with one of the UCLA entries, in the early going. Before long, it was clear that the two Husky crews would be the only contenders for the win. The Husky crew in lane three, which had finished second to the other UW four in Saturday's preliminary, held the edge, but it remained close.
 
The Husky crew in lane three finished the race with an open-water win over the lane-one UW shell, winning with a time of 7:27.541. The second-place time was 7:31.237
 
"Our 2V4 and 3V4 battled side-by-side in both the heat and the final —just as they have at home—but being in a big-time regatta really brings the excitement of the racing season to life," Farooq said, "and I saw both of those boats find another gear here in San Diego.

"The goal of the weekend was to try to create the most challenging racing situations possible," Farooq continued. "With our move to the Big Ten we've been focused on improving the depth of the squad and both novice eights really stepped up. It's been awesome to see their growth since the beginning of the year and they are really starting to hit their stride.  
 
"The team overall is focused and eager," she added. "Our upperclasswomen have created an environment where folks are enjoying going fast and having fun. I'm really proud of the effort this weekend and the training to come."

The Washington women will now have some time to prepare for their next event, the Big Ten Invitational, which will be held April 18-19 at Nathan Benderson Park in Sarasota, Fla. 
 
WASHINGTON LINEUPS
 
Varsity Eight
Cox: Grace Murdock (Roswell, Ga.)
Stroke: Megan Lee (Natick, Mass.)
7: Sophie Houston (Sydney, Australia)
6: Marilou Duvernay-Tardif (St. Jean-Baptiste, Que., Canada)
5: Aisha Rocek (Como, Italy)
4: Zola Kemp (Wellington, New Zealand)
3: Cillian Mullen (Tacoma, Wash.)
2: Olivia Hay (Auckland, New Zealand)
Bow: Shakira Mirfin (Invercargill, New Zealand)
 
Second Varsity Eight
Cox: Isabel Michaelson (Mukilteo, Wash.)
Stroke: Jordan Freer (Lotus, Calif.)
7: Sally Jones (Victoria, B.C., Canada)
6: Chloe Sheppard (Tewkesbury, England, U.K.)
5: Mira Calder (Victoria, B.C. Canada)
4: Violet Holbrow Brooksbank (Monmouth, Wales, U.K.)
3: Emma Waters (Galway, Ireland)
2: Leah Nash (Chatham, Mass.)
Bow: Madeleine Parker (Napier, New Zealand)
 
Varsity Four
Cox: Camille Randall (Seattle, Wash.)
Stroke: Ava Meuleman (Seattle, Wash.)
3: Jess Weir (London, England, U.K.)
2: Cait Whittard (St. Catherine's, Ont., Canada)
Bow: Paris Burbine (Alpharetta, Ga.)
 
Second Varsity Four A
Cox: Olivia Murdock '26 (Roswell, Ga.)
Stroke: Margaret Young (San Anselmo, Calif.)
3: Sofie Sand (Rochester, Wash.)
2: Alex Dessart (Bronxville, CA
Bow: Scout Wilson (San Antonio, Texas)
 
Second Varsity Four B
Cox: Elisabeth Wu (Seattle, Wash.)
Stroke: Carmel Bollag (Seattle, Wash.)
3: Sofia Suhinin (Adelaide, Australia)
2: Cami Martin (Seattle, Wash.)
Bow: Niamh Comerford (London, England, U.K.)
 
Open Eight (First Novice Eight)
Cox: Taylor Inouye (Kailua, Hawai'i)
Stroke: Ella Bayer (Olympia, Wash.)
7: Grace Worthington (Grand Haven, Mich.)
6: Annelise Hahl (Cary, N.C.)
5: Sami Tyler (Camas, Wash.)
4: Caroline Law (Bellingham, Wash.)
3: Marin Maycotte (Austin, Texas)
2: Emily Myers (Oxford, England, U.K.)
Bow: Audrey Cronin (Roswell, Ga.)

Novice Eight (Second Novice Eight)
Cox: Payton Wold (Arlington, Wash.)
Stroke: Liv Ormseth (Vashon Island, Wash.)
7: Malia Odegaard (Bellevue, Wash.)
6: Mina Cook (Seattle, Wash.)
5: Maggie Ward (Madison, Wisc.)
4: Emma Cronin (Roswell, Ga.)
3: Sophia DiBlasi (Maltby, Wash.)
2: Bethan Evans (Bothell, Wash.)
Bow: Claire Cunningham (Seattle, Wash.)