USC Women's Rowing to Race at 2018 NCAA National Championships

The No. 12 ranked USC women's rowing team was selected to compete in the 2018 NCAA Division I Rowing Championships. The selection, which occurred today (Tuesday, May 15), secured USC's 11^th all-time appearance at the NCAA Championships.

The championships will be held May 25-27 at Nathan Benderson Park in Sarasota, Fla., with the University of Central Florida serving as host.

The Women of Troy earned the 10th seed in the I Eight (Varsity Eight) category, the ninth seed in the II Eights (Second Varsity Eight), and the Fours (Varsity Four) locked down the 17^th seed.

The team championship is composed of 22 teams. Eleven conferences were awarded automatic qualification and the remaining 11 slots were filled with at-large selections to complete the championship field. Teams qualifying for the championship are required to field two boats of eight rowers and one boat of four rowers. For the I Eights, II Eights and Fours, all 22 boats will be seeded into four heats.

The 11 crews that were automatically selected due to winning their conference were Washington (Pac-12 Conference), Texas (Big 12 Conference), Ohio State (Big 10 Conference), Princeton (Ivy League), Virginia (Atlantic Coast Conference), Gonzaga (West Coast Conference), Navy (Patriot League), Northeastern (Colonial Athletic Conference), Central Florida (American Athletic Conference), Rhode Island (Atlantic 10 Conference) and Jacksonville (Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference).

Joining the Trojans in Sarasota are 10 additional at-large selections: Brown, California, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Stanford, Syracuse, Washington State, Wisconsin and Yale.

The 2018 NCAA Championships will begin on Friday, May 25 with the preliminary heats starting at 9 a.m., and the preliminary repechage races at 4:12 p.m. on the same day. The Semifinals kick off on Saturday, May 26 at 8:12 a.m., and the petite and grand finals are set to begin at 8:12 a.m. on Sunday, May 27.

USC's last appearance at the NCAA Championships was in 2016, where the Women of Troy placed 14^th overall. The Women of Troy tallied 55 points in the team competition with a 10th-place finish by the varsity eight (fourth in the I Eights Petite Final) and sixth place in the II Eights C Final (18th overall) and fifth place in the Fours C Final (17th overall).

Last year, the Washington Huskies claimed the national title and made history by being the first crew to sweep all three grand events in the 21-year history of the regatta.

For more information on the 2018 NCAA Women's Rowing Championships, click here.

WE'RE IN!! The Women of Troy are headed to Sarasota, Florida for the NCAA Women's Rowing Championships! #FightOn pic.twitter.com/gFLVY2VWCU
— USC Women's Rowing (@USCWomensRowing) May 15, 2018

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