May 2, 2010
SACRAMENTO, Calif. - San Diego State completed its participation in the 2010 Western Intercollegiate Rowing Association (WIRA) Championships at Lake Natoma near Sacramento on Sunday with four boats advancing to the finals in various races.
The Aztecs best showing came in the Novice Eight event where they captured the bronze medal with a third place finish in 7:26.3, less than seven second behind winners Gonzaga. SDSU advanced to the final by finishing as one of the top seven of 16 boats that competed in the qualification heats on Saturday.
The San Diego State Varsity Eight finished in fifth place in its final after qualifying from among the nine boats in the preliminary heats on Saturday. The Aztec finished with a time of 7:12.7 in a race won by Sacramento State in 6:56.5.
SDSU's boat in the Varsity Four competition also took fifth place in a race that saw less than 10-seconds separate the top five finishers. USD won the event in 7:42.8 while the Aztecs completed the 2000 meter course in 7:52.1.
San Diego State's other boat, the Junior Varsity Eight, finished sixth of seven entries in a race won by the boat from Gonzaga. The Aztecs turned in a time of 6:49.3.
SDSU will now prepare for its final event of the 2009-10 season next weekend when it will travel east to compete in the annual Dad Vail Regatta on Friday and Saturday (May 7-8) in Philadelphia.