SAN DIEGO – Washington's women's varsity four won the Karen Plumleigh Cortney Cup, the third varsity took home the Carley Copley Cup, and UW crews earned the silver medal in three other events Sunday on the final day of the San Diego Crew Classic.
 
The annual regatta featured the top four-ranked women's programs in the country as No. 1 Washington was joined by No. 2 California, No. 3 Stanford and No. 4 Texas. Not unexpectedly, those four teams dominated the five featured collegiate races. In fact, Washington won two races while Cal, Stanford and Texas won one each.
 
The UW was the only program to finish in the top two in each of the five finals. The Huskies and Cal will square off again later this month, April 27, on the Montlake Cut in the annual Cal Dual.

"The day started and ended with wins, with some excellent races in between," UW women's coach Yasmin Fafrooq said. "Six lanes of head-to-head racing against top NCAA teams at this point in the season was so valuable. Every boat came away with something they can apply to their next race. The first and second varsity eights had races that came down to the final strokes. That's what the NCAA's are like so I'm glad we got a taste of that.

"The wins in the varsity four and the third varsity eight were a nice start to the season because there are so many walk-ons and Washington kids in those boats," Farooq added. "That part of the team has always been the life blood of the Washington program and they are the pipeline for our top eights down the road." 
 
Here's a recap of the five grand finals in which the Huskies competed:
 
Jessop-Whittier Cup (WV8+)
Washington came off the start and moved immediately into a slim lead over Cal in lane two and Stanford in lane three, though none of the six boats truly fell off the pace early on. By 500 meters, the top four boats (UW, Cal, Stanford and Texas) were nearly neck-and-neck, with the lead seemingly changing with each stroke. Cal moved into a clear lead in the second 500 meters, narrowly ahead of the Huskies and Cardinal. At 1,000 meters, it was still the Bears a couple of seats ahead of Texas, with the UW and Stanford very close behind. At 1,500 meters, that order stayed in tact with the Bears several seats in front of Texas. In the final hundred meters, the Huskies increased their rate and pressured the Cal crew, but the Bears held off the UW and won by about 1.7 seconds. Cal's time was 6:33.434 while Washington finished in 6:35.132. Texas was a very close third in 6:35.890 while Stanford finished fourth.
 
Jackie Ann Stitt Hungness Trophy (W2V8+)
From the start, it was clear that the race was going to be between the three Pac-12 entries in lanes ones (Cal), two (UW) and three (Stanford), with Texas also challenging out in lane six. Stanford led at 500 meters, with Cal a close second and Washington two seats further back. Stanford crossed the 1,000-meter buoy about a half a boat length in front of the Bears and Huskies. Stanford answered challenges from the UW and Cal and kept up its lead all the way. Washington pulled away from the Bears to finish in second place while Texas was fourth. Stanford's winning time was 6:39.198 with Washington posting a 6:41.980.
 
Karen Plumleigh Cortney Cup (WV4+)
In lane one, Stanford moved to the front of the field out of the starting line, with Cal in lane two trailing. By the 250-meter mark, however, Washington's four, coxed by senior Amanda Durkin and crewed by freshmen McKenna Bryant, Kieanna Stephens, Marguerite Trost and Denise Devlyn, had moved into the lead. Through the second 500, the Huskies led a tightly-packed group. By 1,000 meters, the UW was still in front, but Oklahoma made a move in lane six to close on the Huskies. At the 1,500-meter mark, Washington had increased its lead to a full length and it became apparent that the race was on for second place. The Huskies crossed the finish line with an open-water lead over the field, finishing in 7:14.751. Stanford beat Oklahoma for second and Texas finished fourth, with those three all within a second of one another.
 
Laurel Korholz Perpetual Trophy (WN8+)
Washington finished second to Texas in the preliminary heat for the women's novice eight event on Saturday. On Sunday, the Longhorns took the light right out of the gates, gaining a full-length advantage over the rest of the field in the first 500 meters. In the second 500, the Huskies closed the gap, but the Texas crew held its lead through the midway point. Headed into the final 500, those two crews were well in front, but Texas had answered every challenge and maintained its advantage. The Longhorns won the race with a time of 6:59.358. Washington finished in 7:05.076 with both of those two shells well ahead of the other five.
 
Carley Copley Cup (W3V8+)
Washington's final race of the day was another matchup with Cal and Stanford in the top three seeds in the A final for the collegiate open Carley Copley Cup. Coxswain Dana Brooks got the Huskies off of the starting line quickly and out in front. The Huskies led their collegiate opponents by a boat length, with the main competition coming from Potomac Rowing Club in lane five. By 1,000 meters, the Huskies had a half-length of open water over the rest of the field. While the race continued for second through fifth places, the Huskies rowed to a comfortable win in a time of 7:08.392, nearly six seconds ahead of second-place Stanford. Potomac Rowing Club edged out the Stanford lightweights for third place while Cal finished in fifth.
 
Next Up
The Huskies will have a weekend off from competition before returning to Lake Las Vegas in Henderson, Nev., on April 20, when they'll square off against No. 6 Ohio State and No. 9 Michigan.
 
Washington Lineups
 
Varsity Eight
Cox: Marley Avritt (Newport Beach, Calif./Newport Harbor)
Stroke: Calina Schanze (Behlendorf, Germany)
7: Tabea Schendekehl (Dortmund, Germany)
6: Marlee Blue (Seattle, Wash./Holy Names Academy)
5: Sofia Asoumanaki (Athens, Greece)
4: Valentina Iseppi (Gardone Riviera, Italy)
3: Jennifer Wren (Seattle Wash./Bishop Blanchet)
2: Carmela Pappalardo (Salerno, Italy)
Bow: Teal Cohen (Dallas, Texas/The Hockaday School)
 
Second Varsity Eight
Cox: Isabella Corriere (Montclair, N.J./Montclair)
Stroke: Skylar Jacobson (Lakewood, Wash./Steilacoom)
7: Lark Skov (Steamboat Springs, Colo./Steamboat Springs)
6: Elise Beuke (Sequim, Wash./Sequim)
5: Mackenna Cameron (Seattle, Wash./Chief Sealth Int'l.)
4: Klara Grube (Lübeck, Germany)
3: Adele Likin (Seattle, Wash./Roosevelt)
2: Molly Gallaher (Snoqualmie, Wash./Skyline)
Bow: Emma Vagen (Kent, Wash./Kentwood)
 
Varsity Four
Stroke: McKenna Bryant (Kent, Wash./Kennedy Catholic)
3: Kieanna Stephens (Vancouver, B.C., Canada)
2: Marguerite Trost (Nashville, Tenn./Harpeth Hall School)
Bow: Denise Devlyn (Austin, Texas/St. Stephen's Episcopal)
Cox: Amanda Durkin (Hingham, Mass./Hingham)
 
Novice Eight
Cox: Nina Castagna (Cincinnati, Ohio/Walnut Hills)
Stroke: Hallie Jensen (Spokane, Wash./Lakeside)
7: Sierra Williams (Seattle, Wash./Cleveland STEM)
6: Holly Dunford (Tadworth, U.K.)
5: Brittani Shappell (Bellingham, Wash./Walworth Barbour)
4: Sophia Chaffey (Redmond, Wash./Bellevue Christian)
3: Claire Marion (San Marcos, Calif./San Marcos)
2: Isabelle Knowles (Mercer Island, Wash./Mercer Island)
Bow: Mia Middleton (Denver, Colo./Arapahoe)
 
Third Varsity Eight
Cox: Dana Brooks (Tiburon, Calif./Redwood)
Stroke: Dimitra Tsamopoulou (Athens, Greece)
7: Ava Trogus (Oak Park, Ill./Oak Park and River Forest)
6: Holly Drapp (Tampa, Fla./Strawberry Crest)
5: Taylor Buell (Olympia, Wash./Capital)
4: Ellie Bruce (Snoqualmie, Wash./Mount Si)
3: Rachel McGlothlen (Spokane, Wash./West Valley)
2: Annaka Green (Pleasanton, Calif./Amador Valley)
Bow: Jenna Phillips (Dayton, Wash./Dayton)
 
About Washington Rowing
Rowing at University of Washington was established in 1901 with support from the local business community. In 1903, Washington entered its first intercollegiate race and defeated California, starting their storied "Cal Dual" rivalry. From this beginning, UW crews became the champions in the nation, winning the Gold Medal in the Olympics in 1936 as described in the New York Times bestseller The Boys in the Boat. UW has continued its tradition of winning championships and Olympic medals, and today is one of the best university rowing programs in the world. With its state-of-the-art training facility located on the UW campus right on the shores of Lake Washington, surrounded by mountains and in close proximity to the iconic Montlake Cut, Washington Rowing attracts the best men and women student-athletes from the Pacific Northwest and around the world. More information at GoHuskies.com, WashingtonRowing.com and @UW_Rowing.