Clear skies and calm waters made for perfect racing conditions at Lady Bird Lake on Saturday, when No. 1 Texas competed against No. 13 Michigan.

The UT First Varsity Four collected the first win of their four-race sweep as the Longhorns cruised to the finish line at 7:04.062, over five seconds faster than the Wolverine’s 7:12.190.

Texas built off their initial success in the Second Varsity Eight with a new crew organized by head coach Dave O’Neill, in hopes to discover the fastest combination before the NCAAs.

“We will take a look, do we have the right people at the right seats,” O’Neill said.

The Longhorns cruised past the finish buoy with a formidable 6:20.030, beating Michigan by 12 seconds as they finished in 6:32.278.

Halfway through the meet the Longhorns’ First Varsity Eight took to the water with two Australian, sophomore Lucy Searle and freshman Imy Grey, contributing to the crew’s success. Texas has always had an extremely strong First Varsity Eight, winning three of its past four NCAA Championships.

Struggling to keep up with the Longhorns, Michigan clocked a 6:19.132, just eight seconds behind Texas.

Securing their sweep, Texas ended the morning with their Second Varsity Four. The Longhorns trailed the Wolverines in the first 500 meters of the race holding a stroke pace at 34 while Michigan held a 36.

Texas found their rhythm at the 750-meter mark, putting the team’s coxswains at equal length before Texas proved its dominance with a three-and-a-quarter boat length lead heading into the final 300 meters.

The Longhorns’ Second Varsity Four clinched their fourth win of the day finishing at 7:06.594.

Next up is the Longhorn Invite on April 25-26, where Texas will face No. 2 Stanford, No. 15 Central Florida, No. 20 Oklahoma, SMU and the Canadian National Team.

“We know in two weeks racing against Stanford and the Canadian National Team, that’s going to be huge and a huge test. But nothing really changes in terms of our plan for going fast at the end of May for the NCAA Championships,” O’Neill said.

With the Longhorn Invite, SEC and NCAA Championships on the horizon, O’Neill hopes for his team “to get fitter, stronger, sharper and cleaner together.”