March 5, 2001

By DAVID DUNCH
The Santa Clara

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. -- The four men's crew teams returned from their races at Santa Barbara with two wins and two losses. The varsity eight and lightweight novice eight men's crew teams won their races last Saturday at UC Santa Barbara's Lake Cachuma in less than ideal conditions.

Waves crashed over the boats throughout the race due to inclement weather and rough waters, causing all involved a tough time and changes in form and technique.

"I'm pleased with the result," Head Coach Jay Farwell said. "A win is a win. The conditions weren't ideal, it was a foreign course, no markers é and they found a way to win."

Armed with the experience to handle the adverse conditions, the varsity eight boat cruised to victory with a time of 6:14. The lightweight varsity four and novice eight were not, however, and suffered the Broncos' only losses.

"[They] had great difficulty dealing with the weather," senior captain Sean Eirich said. "The races for these boats could have been in our favor if the weather hadn't been such a factor." Farwell is confident for what lies ahead.

"We need to continue to stay positive, push as hard as we can every practice and we'll have more days like [Saturday]," he said.