Seven USD boats entered three events Saturday morning on Mission Bay. A Torero crew won every one. The women's rowing team opened its 2026-27 season with victories in the collegiate eight, open four and open pair at Rowing Cares, while placing two boats first and second in the eight and four pairs atop their race.
The first varsity eight completed the course in 13 minutes, 36.914 seconds. USD's second eight followed in 13:59.307, creating a one-two finish before San Diego State's top boat crossed third in 15:19.170. The margin between the Torero eights was 22.393 seconds; the gap from USD's second boat to SDSU was more than a minute.
Two more wins came in the 8:40 a.m. races. USD's first four posted 16:06.264 in the women's open four. The second Torero pair then won the open pair in 16:37.942, less than four seconds ahead of USD's first pair at 16:41.939. The program's third and fourth pairs completed the top-four sweep.
The third pair finished in 17:14.558, and the fourth recorded 18:19.208. Those times spread wider than the first two, but all four USD entries remained ahead of outside boats in the event. The result gave coaches information across seven lineups rather than a single fast shell, useful at a point when seat combinations are still being tested.
Head races are measured against the clock rather than side-by-side lanes over the standard spring distance. The format rewards sustained rhythm, steering and clean passage through the course. It also makes direct comparisons with later dual races imperfect. Saturday established an opening hierarchy under one set of conditions, not a permanent varsity order.
The regatta also has a purpose outside the results table. Rowing Cares, presented by the San Diego Crew Classic, directs proceeds to local families affected by cancer. USD's official recap emphasized that community mission alongside the racing. The connection is verifiable through the event account; individual beneficiaries and amounts were not disclosed in the source.
The first eight included coxswain Hava Appleyard and stroke Grace Kaufmann. The winning pair placed Skye Lang at stroke with Esme Oxman at bow. Several rowers appeared in more than one winning lineup, including Emily Fox and Leilani Gillespie in the eight and four, making recovery part of the morning's performance.
The second eight's runner-up result matters because depth is measured by the distance between lineups as well as by the winning shell. USD placed two eights ahead of SDSU's first boat and four pairs ahead of every outside entry in that event. Early-season rosters remain fluid, but the regatta gave the Toreros enough finishes to compare combinations under the same wind, water and course.
USD next sends a crew to Boston for the Head of the Charles on Oct. 17, then returns to Mission Bay for the Fall Classic on Nov. 8. Rowing Cares supplied a clean beginning: three entries, three event wins and six additional Torero boats visible in the order. The next races will show which combinations hold when the field and course change.