April 5, 1998

SAN DIEGO -- The No. 2-ranked Cal men's varsity eight finished second in the grand final of the Copley Cup at the San Diego Crew Classic on Mission Bay, Sunday, April 5. The race closed out an outstanding day of racing for the men's heavyweight squad which took home gold medals in three other events including the JV, freshman and second frosh.

"Our squad had a good day at the races," said coach Steve Gladstone. "However, we are very disappointed that our varsity eight didn't have the kind of race in the Copley Cup final that it is capable of having. I'm proud of my varsity crew. They beat a number of highly regarded eights today, but we still have a lot of work to do. "

The Bears were struggling from the start and trailed both Washington and Penn at the 500-meter point of the race. The Huskies continued move out on the field and by the midway point, lead by a full boat length. Cal rallied in final 1000 meters to regain second place from the Quakers, but were unable to make up the distance it lost to the Huskies.

Overall, the Bears reaffirmed their No. 2 preseason ranking by finishing ahead of the No. 4 Penn, No. 5 Harvard, No. 6 Yale, No. 7 Wisconsin, and No. 10 Temple.

The Golden Bears did bring home two major championships on the day. In the men's JV race, Cal lead from start to finish as they scorched the course to finish 7 seconds ahead of second-place Wisconsin and 9 seconds up on Huskies.

The Cal freshman eight also found itself the awards podium after a convincing 4-second win over Washington.

"We will face the Huskies at least three more times this season," said Gladstone. "The varsity eight remains the hunter and has already shifted its focus to the Washington dual race which is only three weeks away in Berkeley. Our other boats become the hunted, but realize they still need to prove themselves in each upcoming race."

San Diego Crew Classic Results:  (2000 meters on Mission Bay)

Copley Cup      
Men's Varsity      
Grand Final      
1.   Washington   5:38.66
2.   Cal   5:42.15
3.   Yale   5:44.68
4.   Penn   5:46.50
5.   Harvard   5.47.61
6.   Temple   5:55.36
      
Copley Cup      
Men's Varsity      
Petite Final      
7.   Wisconsin   5:55.02
8.   Stanford   5:59.77
9.   Oregon St.   6:01.01
10.   Gonzaga   6:12.29
11.   Purdue   6:15.21
12.   UC Davis   6:29.15
      
Men's JV      
Grand Final      
1.   Cal (A)   5:56.59
2.   Wisconsin   6:03.75
3.   Yale   6:07.60
4.   Washington   6:07.99
5.   Harvard   6:10.89
6.   Cal (B)   6:14.58
      
Men's Frosh      
Grand Final      
1.   Cal   6:01.40
2.   Washington   6:05.22
3.   Orange Coast   6:26.23
4.   Oregon St.   6:31.59
5.   UC Davis   6:39.69
6.   Stanford   6:41.49
      
Men's Second Frosh      
1.   Cal   6:31.8
2.   UC Davis (A)   6:39.21
3.   Cal Ltw.   7:03.71
4.   UC Davis (B)   7:04.76