Cal Breezes Thru Day 1 of Championships
Advances All Varsity Eights to Semifinals
Varsity Four To Grand Final
SACRAMENTO – The No. 2 California men's rowing team breezed through its first day at the 2026 IRA National Championship on Lake Natoma in Sacramento. All three varsity eights won their heats to advance to the AB semifinals, while the varsity four posted the fastest time-trial of the morning session before winning its ABC semifinal in the afternoon session to punch its ticket to the Grand Final. The varsity eight set the tone for the Golden Bears in their first race of the morning with a comfortable four-second margin over runner-up Dartmouth. Cal jumped out to the front of the field early and held a solid advantage for the entirety of the race, looking composed down the stretch as the boat cruised to the heat victory with a final time of 5:41.650. Cal's 2V8+ battled it out with Syracuse in the Bears' second event of the day. The Bears and the Orange were neck-and-neck through the first 500 meters before Cal began to pull away from Syracuse at the midway point of the race. Cal had a two-second advantage heading into the final sprint and maintained the lead over Syracuse to clinch the heat victory with a final time of 5:45.150. The Bears' 3V8+ kept things rolling to close out Cal's sweep of its varsity eight heats, putting up a final time of 5:52.000. Cal took command of the race early on, pulling out to a five-second advantage over a trailing Penn at the 1000-meter mark. The Quakers made a push in the final sprint to close the gap, but it was not enough to overcome the Bears who finished with nearly a three-second margin of victory.
The varsity four came out hot in its time-trial, posting a final time of 6:05.970 – over six and a half seconds quicker than the next-fastest crew – to advance to the ABC semifinal in the afternoon session. The Bears won their ABC semifinal with a time of 6:30.220 – over three and a half seconds faster than Princeton in second place – to clinch a spot in the Grand Final. RESULTS: V8+ 1. California – 5:41.650 2. Dartmouth – 5:45.760 3. Yale – 5:48.870 4. Columbia – 5:54.260 5. Georgetown – 5:58.100 6. UCSD – 6:06.620 2V8+ 1. California – 5:45.150 2. Syracuse – 5:47.260 3. Yale – 5:48.990 4. Boston – 5:52.140 5. Georgetown – 6:04.340 6. La Salle – 6:07.230 3V8+ 1. California – 5:52.000 2. Penn – 5:54.750 3. Northeastern – 5:56.710 4. Navy – 5:58.270 5. Holy Cross – 6:07.860 V4+ Time-Trial: 6:05.970 ABC Semifinal 1. California – 6:30.220 2. Princeton – 6:34.090 3. Syracuse – 6:39.200 4. Cornell – 6:43.710 5. Colgate – 6:46.910 6. Stetson – 6:49.570 LINEUPS: V8+ Coxswain: Michael Kain 8. Maximilian Pfautsch 7. Tobias Kristensen 6. Pablo Moreno 5. Alexander Baroni 4. Gennaro di Mauro 3. Noah Anger 2. Nemanja Luledzija 1. Tom O'Sullivan 2V8+ Coxswain: Ethan Nghiem 8. Leo Rosenquist 7. Eddie Bayfield 6. Osian James 5. Rory Menzies 4. Xavier Gagnon 3. Josh Knight 2. Tim Roth 1. Matthew Waddell 3V8+ Coxswain: Austin Chen 8. Mihajlo Dedic 7. Flynn English 6. Dan Bradbery 5. Nat Gauden 4. Evan Gold 3. Jeremy Beale 2. Thomas Heerding 1. James O'Meara V4+ Coxswain: Mackenzie Fox 4. Chris Weiss 3. William McClean 2. Leo Shetler 1. Charlie Warren 1. California – 5:52.000 2. Penn – 5:54.750 3. Northeastern – 5:56.710 4. Navy – 5:58.270 5. Holy Cross – 6:07.860










