Junior Women, Senior Men Win At 116th Class Day

Saturday, March 25

Seattle, Wash.

10:00 AM

University of Washington

Class Day Regatta

March 25, 2017 | Men's Rowing, Women's Rowing

2017 Class Day Results Class Day Lineups Photo Gallery

SEATTLE – The Washington men's and women's rowing programs got the 2017 season officially under way Saturday as the Huskies hosted the 116th Annual Class Day Regatta at Montlake Cut.

The senior men and junior women won the feature races on a sunny, but windy, morning.

In the women's race, the Seattle Times Women's Eight, the junior class held off a strong challenge from the sophomores for the win. The Class of 2018 finished in 6:35.897, about five seconds in front of the Class of 2019. The senior class took third and the freshmen were fourth.

"This tradition is unbelievable," exclaimed Yasmin Farooq, the Huskies' first-year women's head coach participating in her initial Class Day. "A hundred and sixteen years and counting, and now I totally get it. Spring break is a really exciting week here around the boat house, and to cap it off with Class Day races is really the perfect finale."

In the George M. Varnell Men's Eight, the seniors rowed the 2,000 meters in 5:55.871 and took home the trophy for the second year in a row, having won as juniors in 2016. The sophomores finished second, a little more than three seconds back. The freshmen and juniors took third and fourth, respectively.

"It was a good, hard-fought race all the way down, which was great," said UW men's coach Michael Callahan. "It's always great to see the seniors win. You're always rooting for them in their last shot at it."

In two earlier races, upperclassman crews beat freshman boats in both the men's and women's events.

Here are recaps of Saturday's four races:

Women's Varsity/Novice Challenge
In the first race of the day, a "classless" boat of sophomores, juniors and seniors rowed to a relatively easy win over the Huskies' second freshman boat. Coxed by sophomore Amanda Durkin and stroked by junior Anna Porteus, the veteran crew got out to an early lead and held on for a 10-second victory over the freshmen. The varsity boat won in 6:58.547, to the freshmen's 7:08.354.

Men's Varsity/Freshman Challenge
The men's varsity/freshman challenge featured three boats: a very strong mixed-class boat, a second freshman eight and a third boat that included both upperclassmen and freshmen. The varsity boat, which was coxed by Stuart Sim (back after a year off to compete with the Australian national team) and included several members of the 2016 top varsity boat, led the whole way, winning in a time of 6:01.498. The freshman boat, however, was never far behind, challenging the veteran rowers throughout and finishing just over four seconds back. The combo boat took third.

Seattle Times Women's Eight
In the women's feature race, the juniors and sophomores fought a back-and-fourth race, trading the lead early on, with the freshman boat rowing much of the race ahead of the seniors in the third and fourth spots. Around the halfway mark, the juniors, with Phoebe Marks-Nicholes in the coxswain seat and Brooke Pierson stroking, took the lead and held off the sophomores for the win. The Class of 2018 won in a time of 6:35.897, a bit less than five seconds ahead of the sophomores. The seniors overtook the freshmen for third place.

George M. Varnell Men's Eight
In the final race, it was the sophomore boat that took the early lead, while the seniors began to make their move at around 1,000 meters, taking the lead in the third 500 of the race. With Lia Roberds coxing and Guglielmo Carcano rowing in the stroke seat, the senior class won in 5:58.871. The sophomores took third place, ahead of the freshmen in third and the juniors fourth.

Following the Class Day Regatta, captains for the 2017 season were introduced, along with the Piggott Award winners for most inspirational, and the Schaller Award for the highest GPA on each of the men's and women's teams, listed below.

2017 Team Captains
Women: Margaret Phillips
Men: Arne Landboe

Piggott Award - Most Inspirational
Women: Danielle Hansen
Men: Harrison King

Schaller Award – Highest GPA
Women: Marissa Therriault
Men: Harrison King

Next Saturday, April 1, the UW crews will be busy. Washington's women will compete at the Pac-12 Invitational in Redwood Shores, Calif., taking on Ohio State, Michigan and Virginia over the two-day regatta. Other women's crews will also join the men's team for the Husky Open on Montlake Cut, starting at 8:00 a.m. PT

Follow Washington Rowing on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UWHuskyCrew for updates and information.

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.