UW men upset No. 1 California

RANCHO CORDOVA, Calif. — The fourth-ranked Washington men upset No. 1 California to win the varsity eight championship, and the UW women won the team title yesterday at the Pac-10 rowing championships on Lake Natoma.

The Huskies men won their first conference varsity eight crown since 1997, stopping the Golden Bears' streak of five consecutive victories in the Pac-10 regatta. California has lost only two races since the start of the 1999 season — both defeats against Washington, which beat the four-time defending NCAA champions last year in a dual meet in Berkeley.

Washington went wire-to-wire in the featured race. The Huskies covered the 2,000-meter course in 5 minutes, 45.1 seconds, followed by California in 5:47.5 and Oregon State in 5:52.6.

"Cal is a great team. They have been very dominant, so it's nice to be able to beat them here," said UW men's coach Bob Ernst. "Now is the fun part. The IRA is going to be the best field that's ever been there in my career. I'm just glad that we're going there as a contender."

The two Pac-10 rivals meet again at the Intercollegiate Rowing Association Championships, May 29-31 in Camden, N.J. California won the last four national titles.

Although they didn't win any individual women's events, the Huskies received the Pac-10 team trophy by virtue of strong finishes in all four events. The Huskies finished third in the novice eight competition and placed second in the three other races — the varsity eight, junior-varsity eight and varsity four.

Stanford was a surprising winner in the women's varsity-eight race, halting Washington's streak of 11 consecutive conference championships.

The Washington State women used a strong performance from their varsity eight to finish in a third-place tie with Stanford (47).

PAC-10 ROWING CHAMPIONSHIPS

At Rancho Cordova, Calif.

(all races were 2,000 meters)

GRAND FINAL RACE RESULTS

Men's Varsity Eight — 1, Washington 5:45.1. 2, California 5:47.5. 3, Oregon State 5:52.6. 4, Stanford 5:53.4. 5, UC Davis 6:04.5. 6, USC 6:09.6.

Women's Varsity Eight — 1, Stanford 6:30.3. 2, Washington 6:34.7. 3, Washington State 6:36.3. 4, California 6:36.7. 5, USC 6:38.4. 6, Oregon State 6:44.2.

Men's Varsity Four — 1, California 6:43.7. 2, Washington 6:45.7. 3, UC San Diego 6:58.1. 4, San Diego State 7:05.7. 5. Oregon Sate 7:10.0. 6, Stanford 7:16.3. 7, Sacramento State 7:33.8.

Women's Varsity Four — 1, California 7:29.7. 2, Washington 7:38.5. 3, Washington State 7:40.3. 4, Oregon State 7:45.8. 5, Stanford 7:52.2. 6, USC 8:05.7.