CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Washington men's rowing concluded its first regatta of the 2015-16 season, as the varsity eight took fourth in the men's championship eights and the varsity four took seventh in the men's championship fours on the second and final day of the Head of the Charles.

“Today was a good day for our team,” UW head coach Michael Callahan said. “Niles Garratt and Kristen Brownlee did a great job of managing our team throughout the regatta. We would've loved to have won a medal, but this was all about development for us. We're confident in the quality of guys we have in our boathouse. We just have to continue to trust the process and trust our work ethic through these fall and winter months.”

The Huskies finished in fourth place of 27 total entries in the men's championship eights, finishing in 14:26.64. The Huskies debuted a new varsity eight at the Head of the Charles, with no holdovers from the varsity eight that competed at the IRA National Championships in June.

“With a new group to get the result that they did, it was a solid performance for our eights,” Callahan said. “The fall is all about seeing where we are, and we got a good idea of what this group could be capable of. There's a lot of talent in that boat.”

In the men's championship four, the Huskies finished in seventh of the 15 entries after starting from the third position. UW's final time was 16:33.43.

The two boats consisted of a heavy majority of rowers from Washington, with six local products of the nine members of the men's eight and four Washingtonians of the five in the men's four.

The Huskies began the Head of the Charles with three great performances on Saturday, as its alumni eight took third overall, and two rowers – Ben Davison and Jernej Markovc – finished fourth and fifth, respectively, in the men's championship singles.

UW men's crew will host the Head of Lake on Nov. 8 on the Montlake Cut, the Huskies' only other competition in the fall before beginning the spring season on Sunday, March 26, with the Class Day Regatta.

“We'll continue to put in the work,” Callahan said. “These guys know how to grind and we've proven that the work that goes on in our boathouse on a day-to-day basis produces results. It'll be fun to see what we look like at the Head of the Lake and how our team has developed.”

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