NAC Men’s Varsity 8 claims silver medal at national regatta

The Newport Aquatic Center’s Men’s Varsity 8 earned the silver medal in a dramatic finish at the USRowing Youth National Championships that concluded Sunday at Nathan Benderson Park in Sarasota, Fla.

The NAC Men’s Varsity 8 was edged by Oakland Strokes, by three-tenths of a second, in a photo finish. NAC finished in 5 minutes, 52.173 seconds. Oakland won in 5:51.813.

It was NAC’s best finish since 2009.

The NAC Men’s Varsity 8 included: coxswain Ethan Ruiz, stroke Daniel Ross (bound for Orange Coast College), Austin Moore (Wisconsin), Harrison Grant (UC Berkeley), Patrick Klingensmith (University of San Francisco), Micah Adelhson (UC San Diego), Reid Rolfes, Max Clemence (Santa Clara) and Jack Dole (Washington).

“It was great to see the guys pull out such a courageous performance,” said Marcel Stiffey, the NAC boys’ head coach. “We went into the final telling the seniors to leave it all out on the water, as this would be their last race with the NAC. It really sets the tone for next year with the younger guys coming up.”

The NAC Women’s Varsity 8 finished 14th, its best result in over 10 years.

The NAC Women’s Varsity 8 included: coxswain Karly Pearson, Rylee Gladych, Savanah Hapsic, Katie Conway (Gonzaga), Bridget Shoenberger (Gonzaga), Maggie Osumi, Gretchen Shoenberger, Kara Bray and Jenna Garland (OCC).

The NAC Men’s Varsity 4 finished ninth. The NAC Men’s Lightweight 4 came in 11th.

The NAC Women’s Lightweight 8 finished 12th, its best result in over 10 years.

— From staff reports