Crew | UW-Cal race clash of 1 vs. 2

Just like Harvard-Yale and Oxford-Cambridge, the annual dual race between men's varsity crews of Washington and California always is newsworthy.

But Saturday's 2,000-meter race at 9:45 a.m. that ends in the Montlake Cut has a special buzz for a variety of reasons:

• Washington is ranked No. 1 and Cal is No. 2.

• Cal is the defending national champion and will have six returning rowers in its boat.

• Each crew has three rowers who were teammates on the victorious Canadian under-23 crew at last summer's world championships.

• Washington has a woman coxswain in the men's varsity boat and she has a knack for winning. She is Katelin Snyder, a sophomore from Winter Park, Fla., and she coxed the U.S. under-23 women's eight to a gold medal last summer in the world championships after coxing the UW frosh men to the national collegiate title.

"I think it's going to be one of the most exciting races since I've been here," said Huskies coach Bob Ernst, who joined the UW staff in 1974 and is in his 20th season as men's head coach.

Cal coach Stephen Gladstone said, "It's exciting. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we have the pace to stay with the Huskies. The reality is either we will or we won't."

The two national powers started the series in 1903, and it is one of the oldest continuing sports events on the West Coast. The schools have a combined total of 26 national titles and four Olympic gold medals in eight-man shells.

Although Cal and UW will see each other again at the more important Pac-10 championships and the Intercollegiate Rowing Association national regatta, the dual regatta remains special.

"The dual was going a long time before there was ever a Pac-10 championship and before California and Washington started going to the IRA," Ernst said.

The Huskies lead the series 66-29-1, but Cal has won two in a row and six of the past eight.

The race for the Schoch Cup will provide a brief reunion for the six rowers on the two teams who rowed on the world-championship U-23 Canadian boat last summer.

The Bears from that crew are Jan Tize, Max Wyatt and Dan Casaca. The Huskies are Will Crothers, Max Lang and Rob Gibson.

Gibson said he and Wyatt talked by phone Wednesday.

"Max and I are pretty good friends," he said. "We're both excited to race each other."

Notes

• In the women's varsity eights, Washington is ranked No. 11 and Cal is No. 12. Washington leads the women's series 22-8, but Cal has won the past three dual races.

• The schedule: 9 a.m., women's varsity four; 9:10 a.m., women's novice eight; 9:17 a.m., men's freshman eight; 9:24 a.m., women's junior-varsity eight; 9:31 a.m., men's junior-varsity eight; 9:38 a.m., women's varsity eight; 9:45 a.m., men's varsity eight.

Craig Smith: 206-464-8279 or csmith@seattletimes.com