Virginia couldn't pull of the Varsity Eight victory, but when all was said and done, the Cavaliers stood alone atop the podium with the program's first-ever team national championship since the title's inception in 1997. That's right, step aside, Stanford. You're yesterday's news, Yale. The "Public Ivy" is in town now.
Virginia head coach Kevin Sauer waselated, to say the least. "After getting married, the birth of my children and my children getting married ... this is right up there! It's unbelievable. We have worked so hard at this. It's a great, great feeling."
Virginia's Varsity Four dominated the competition, and finished in third in the Second Varsity Eight. As it often does, it all came down to the Varsity Eight to determine the national title. It essentially did not matter whether the Hoos won the final race or finished well behind the lead. With one point separating Cal and UVa, and three points separating Stanford and UVa, the Hoos only needed to beat these two suckers.
And that's just what they did. Yale managed to pull off the varsity eight victory, but after eking out a second-place finish just ahead of Princeton, and more importantly, Cal (3rd) and Stanford.
"I could not stand and watch on the jumbotron, I had to get moving," coach Sauer said. "So I rode a bicycle up to the start line. So I really only saw the first 1,000 and the last 300-meters. I lost them a little bit in the middle because I had to go through some woods and stuff. ... I knew they were in third at the 1,000 and I thought 'okay come on you guys.' ... So I was coming through the woods and I heard the announcer say 'Virginia is in second.'"
I'm thrilled to have Virginia's second NCAA title of the year, including men's soccer last season. It also means another 100 points added to Virginia's Director's Cup standings. We'll keep you posted as updated standings get announced, but keep an eye out for our best finish ever.