INDIANAPOLIS – The Grand Finals are set for the NCAA Division II Rowing Championships, and both of Western Washington’s crews will race for the national title on Sunday.
The WWU four used a strong start and then held off a late charge by Seattle Pacific to win the repechage during the second day of the 2019 NCAA Division II Rowing Championships on Saturday at the Indianapolis Rowing Center at Eagle Creek Park.
The Vikings battled a stiff headwind, finishing the 2,000-meter course in 8:15.263, over a second faster than second-place SPU. Both the Vikings and the Falcons advance to Sunday’s Grand Final, where they will match up against Central Oklahoma and Florida Tech with the national title on the line.
WWU was propelled to victory behind a strong start, creating space between SPU and third-place UC San Diego over the first 1,000 meters. The Falcons surged over the final 750 meters, but the Vikings held off the charge with a strong finish to close out the victory. UCSD and Jefferson will race for the 5th and 6th-place spots in the petite final for the four on Sunday.
The WWU varsity eight had Saturday off after winning Friday’s second heat to advance directly to the Grand Final. The Vikings will go head-to-head against Central Oklahoma (winner of Friday’s first heat), Florida Tech and Seattle Pacific. Florida Tech and SPU finished first and second in Saturday’s repechage to advance to the Grand Final.
The 2019 NCAA Division II National Champion will be determined via a point system based off finish, with the winner of the eight receiving 18 points and the four 12 points (full chart of points listed below). Central Oklahoma is the defending national champion with WWU finishing runner-up in 2018, a year after the Vikings claimed the program’s eighth national title in 2017.
Racing on Sunday is scheduled to start at 6:24 am PT/9:24 am ET with the Division II Fours Petite Final. WWU crews will be in action at 6:36 am PT/9:36 am ET in the Fours Grand Final and at 7 am PT/10 am ET with the Eights Grand Final. Both races will be streamed live on NCAA.com, with the same four teams (WWU, Central Oklahoma, Florida Tech, Seattle Pacific) making up the four-boat fields for the four and eight Grand Finals.
