Over the weekend, No. 4 Texas Rowing opened its spring season in California for the San Diego Crew Classic at Fiesta Bay-Crown Point Shores. The regatta is regarded as one of the most competitive and diverse events of the spring season, featuring some of the top teams in the nation. The Longhorns sent four boats to the meet: a varsity eight, second varsity eight, varsity four and a novice eight.

Saturday’s races gave the Longhorns top-two finishes for all four of its boats, including a first place for the novice eight. These strong Saturday showings secured each boat a spot in Sunday’s premier races against the likes of Washington, Stanford, Cal, and UCLA.

On Sunday, the varsity four and the second varsity eight both claimed fourth place, respectively, and the first varsity placed third in its event. However, the highlight of the weekend belonged to the novice eight, who won the Laurel Korholz Perpetual Trophy for the second year in a row with a time of 6:59.358, beating last year’s winning time of 7:20.007.

This stretch of the year is a great measuring tool for the Longhorns. Many of the teams they face in the nonconference portion of the season are regarded as part of the top rowing echelon, giving Texas some extra practice against the nation’s best before its hopeful rematch at the end of season. The Longhorns’ success at this event shows the potential noise that they could make at the NCAA Championships in Florida.

The next meet for the Longhorns will take place in Princeton, New Jersey, on April 20 against Ivy League powers Yale and Princeton.