SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The Gonzaga men's rowing team competed at the Western Sprints today as the Varsity 8 boat took third and the JV boat placed second.
 
In the Varsity 8 race, Gonzaga finished third with a time of 6:16.1. UC San Diego placed first and finished in 6:05.6, automatically qualifying for the IRA Championships.
 
The JV boat placed second with a finishing time of 6:22.7, just barely behind Santa Clara's first place finish of 6:21.3.
 
"JV was definitely a great race and was separated by half-length most of the way down the course," head coach Dan Gehn said. "Varsity Eight struggled in the second half and couldn't stay with leader's pace, but this is a young team and they are already talking about next year."
 
This race concludes GU's season as both boats found success this year. The JV boat is currently ranked No. 25 in the IRA Coaches Poll and the Varsity boat is receiving votes in the most recent poll, as they were recently ranked No. 25 as well.
 
EVENT HISTORY:
- The Western Sprints was formed as a stand-alone championship in 2014.
- Gonzaga won the first championship, defeating USD by more than two seconds to claim the varsity eight title. That same year, GU's second varsity eight finished in second, three seconds behind the Toreros.
- In 2015, the Bulldogs took first in the second varsity eight, winning with a time of 6:27.0.

FULL RESULTS
V8:
1. UC San Diego 6:05.6
2. Santa Clara 6:08.4
3. Gonzaga 6:16.1
4. San Diego 6:21.1

JV8:
1. Santa Clara University 6:21.3
2. Gonzaga 6:22.7
3.UC San Diego 6:27.9
4. San Diego University - Scratch

LINEUPS
V8:
Cox: Gabrielle Sabatini
Stroke: Aidan McCarthy
7: Joey Moore
6: Michael Powers
5: Lucas Abeln
4: Aidan Smith
3: Jeremiah Guest
2: Nicholas Kittleman 
Bow: Jack Githens

JV8:
Cox: Finn Dugan
Stroke: Matt Simmons
7: Tyler Smith
6: Andrew Lof
5: Garrett Urvater
4: Kendall Peter
3: Jack Hare
2: Anders Svenningsen
Bow: Owen Kirby