SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Santa Clara men's rowing had a historic performance at the 2016 WIRA Championships as the team's Varsity 8 boat won the event for the first time. The Broncos were honored for their performance at V8+ and overall as a team as part of the All-WIRA selections, announced by the association Tuesday.
Sophomore Peter Morton and freshman Grant Findlay received First Team All-WIRA accolades and head coach Jay Farwell was named WIRA Coach of the Year for the second straight season.
"Peter has really stepped up his level of intensity this year both on and off the water," Farwell said. "Grant has been a key contributor to the success of our Novice 8 and more importantly the Varsity 8 this season. He has a very strong work ethic and has a very positive attitude in his approach to rowing.
"They both deservedly earned a spot on the first-team All-WIRA. Make no mistake about it, while these two individuals have been recognized by WIRA, it is the collective effort of the team that has led to this selection for Grant and Peter and our overall success this season."
In addition to Varsity 8's gold medal, the Bronco Novice 8 and Novice 4 boats also rowed well and took home silver at Lake Natoma. The Varsity 8 boat won five of its seven races this spring while the Novice 8 boat won three races.
"As for coach of the year, I attribute a great deal to our success to our coaching staff. Evan Bainbridge does an amazing job with our team and I think he is one of the best coaches around. We also get a great deal of support from our strength and conditioning coach Blake Gourley, who provides a very good strength and conditioning program for us. Lastly, our student-athletes continue to raise the bar each year and perform at a very high level."
The Broncos return to the water on Saturday for the Western Sprints Regatta in Lake Natoma. They are looking to earn a berth in the IRA National Championship Regatta for the second year in a row.
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