GOLD RIVER, Calif. – California women's crew will send all three of its boats to the semifinals after  posting strong results in the opening day of the NCAA Women's Rowing Championships Friday on Gold River. Both of Cal's eights won their heats, while the varsity four finished second in its heat.

"The team did a great job today. To have all three boats qualify to go directly to the semi finals is huge," said head coach Al Acosta. "The semis will of course be much harder than today, but we're confident that all three boats are well prepared to take the next step."

The top-seeded varsity eight continued its undefeated streak with a win by open water, clocking in at 06:23.7, nearly five seconds ahead of second-place Princeton's 06:28.4. The Bears took the lead early, outpacing the nearest boat by two seconds in the first split, and never let up. Yale, who held second place through the 1500-meter split, finished third at 06:30.2.

Though Michigan led by nearly a second after the first 500 meters, Cal's second eight surged ahead to a one-second lead by the 1000-meter mark to capture the top spot in its heat. The Bears finished at 06:34.6 to top second-place Yale (06:37) and Michigan (06:40.1) at third.

Cal's varsity four finished second (07:28.3) behind Brown (07:21.2), while Texas (07:34.8) claimed the third-place spot.

All three boats will compete in the semifinals, which begin at 8:30 a.m. PT on Saturday.

Fans can follow the Bears for live race updates and a behind-the-scenes look at the NCAA Championships on their official Twitter handle @CalWCrew. 

Varsity Eight
Results: 1. California (06:23.7), 2. Princeton (06:28.4), 3. Yale (06:30.2), 4. Gonzaga (6:35.7), 5. USC (06:38.1)
Cal lineup: Lindsay Meltz (cox), Kendall Chase (8), Ingvild Roenningen (7), Caileigh Filmer (6), Mia Croonquist (5), Jacinta Edmunds (4), Dorothee Beckendorff (3), Inger Kavlie (2), Rowan McKellar (1)

Second Varsity Eight
Results: 1. California (06:34.6), 2. Yale (06:37), 3. Michigan (06:40.1), 4. USC (06:47.6), 5. Massachusetts (7:00.3), 6. Navy (07:12)
Cal lineup: Hannah Christopher (cox), Sarah Schwartz (8), Charlotte Siering (7), Hunter Deuel (6), Maddie Wolf (5), Charlotte Passot (4), Stephanie Kraemer (3), Katie De Haas (2), Danielle Struck (1)

Varsity Four
Results: 1. Brown (07:21.2), 2. California (07:28.3), 3. Texas (07:34.8), 4. Harvard (07:46.1), 5. Massachusetts (08:00.5)
Cal lineup: Hannah Freeman (cox), Roisin Duffy (4), Kendall Ritter (3), Hailey Drangsholt (2), Lisa Perrine (1)