MADISON, Wis. – As Wisconsin's top three boats were in California for the Stanford Invite, the rest of the Wisconsin men's rowing team enjoyed a picture perfect day on its first and only 2016 racing on Lake Mendota as they took on border rival Minnesota, and in-state competitor MSOE (Milwaukee School of Engineering).

"That's basically all you hope for in this race is good weather because the racing is not super serious, we don't have any stake boat holders and all the coaches are pretty relaxed about the racing for the most part so all you can really ask for is good weather," said coach Beau Hoopman. "Having flat conditions and fair conditions and no real hiccups which is all you can really ask for in a race like this.

"We've had a running dual with Minnesota for as long as I can remember. MSOE, I think the last five years we've had them come because we have a connection with them and we know their head coach because he rowed here. It's great to have teams like that in the area that are willing to come and race our guys."

Overall, the Badgers had a pretty successful day as they came out on top of all but one of their races.

The varsity eight crew lead the way by taking first place in their heat with a time of 6 minutes and 4.1 seconds. Minnesota took second with a time of 6:16.3 while MSOE finished with a time of 6:24.5.

Second varsity eight followed suit by finishing with a time of 6:15.2 to finish in front of Minnesota (6:16.1) and MSOE (6:24.5).

Wisconsin's freshman four and varsity four finished with times of 6:44.4 and 6:46.0, respectively, to go 1-2 in their race. MSOE followed with a time of 6:58.1 and Minnesota rounded out the matchup with a time of 6:58.7.

UW's second varsity four boat (6:52.9) fell just a couple seconds short of winning their race as they fell to Minnesota who won with a time of 6:49.2. MSOE rounded out the trio, finishing with a time of 7:40.6.

Wisconsin's third varsity four got the Badgers back on track though as they squeaked out a victory by just over a second, finishing with a time of 6:59.3 to beat Minnesota (7:00.7).  

The Badger's lightweight four and second lightweight four took first and second in their race as they won in open water.

Hoopman added, "For a lot of the guys here, they're still trying to get into the top three boats so any information we can get in a racing situation is more input than we had before."

The freshman looked impressive as well as their top two boat lead the way by finishing with times of 6:09.0 and 6:18.3, respectively, to top Minnesota (7:15.0) and MSOE (7:26.0). In addition, the freshman four and second freshman four boats took first and second as well as they finished with times of 6:47.3 and 6:49.4.

Finally, Wisconsin's third and fourth freshman four boats rounded out the day for the Badgers as they finished first and third with times of 7:05.2 and 7:29.4. Minnesota took second with a time of 7:22.1 while MSOE rounded out the race with a time of 7:36.0.

"So far, everything we've thrown at the freshman they've done pretty well with. They're racers so that's all you can ask for with the freshman," Hoopman said.

The Badgers will be back in action next weekend on Saturday, April 23 as they host the Devil's Lake Dual at Devil's Lake in Baraboo, Wisconsin.

Wisconsin vs. Minnesota/MSOE
Saturday, April 16, 2016
Madison, Wis.
Lake Mendota
2000 meters
Varsity Eight
1. Wisconsin, 6:04.1; 2. Minnesota, 6:16.1; 3. MSOE, 6:24.5
V8 A Lineup: Andrew Hamilton (cox), Thomas Walker, Graham Mink, Zach Ruedinger, John French, Tim Glennon, Steve Knopp, Alexander Butler, Derek Sachs

Second Varsity Eight
1. Wisconsin, 6:15.2; 2. Minnesota B, 6:21.6; 3. Minnesota C, 6:21.6; 4. MSOE, 6:48.9
2V8 Lineup: Theodore Van Beek (cox), Benjamin Webster, Kyle James, Nicholas Ryan, Patrick Hoeppner, Alexander Shvets, Nigel Baummer, Henry Bourgeios, Jacob Weber

Varsity Four
1. Wisconsin F4, 6:44.4; 2. Wisconsin V4, 6:46.0; 3. MSOE, 6:58.1; 4. Minnesota, 6:58.7
V4 A Lineup: Theodore Van Beek (cox), Graham Mink, Alexander Butler, John French, Tim Glennon
F4 Lineup: Arthur Condor (cox), Dylan Adams, Kyle McCarthy, Benjamin Waller, Tim Zogleman

Varsity Four B
1. Minnesota, 6:49.5; 2. Wisconsin, 6:52.9; 3. MSOE, 7:40.6
V4 B Lineup: Jefferson Chan (cox), Webster, Zach Ruedinger, Henry Bourgeios, Nigel Baummer

Varsity Four C/D
1. Wisconsin, 6:59.3; 2. Minnesota C, 7:00.7; 3. Minnesota D, 7:26.6; 4. MSOE, 7:29.1
V4 C Lineup: Claude Vandevender (cox), Patrick Hoeppner, Nicholas Ryan, Jared Gordon, Alexander Shvets

Lightweight Varsity Four
1. Wisconsin A, 6:48.7; 2. Wisconsin B, 6:58.2; 3. Minnesota, 7:15.0; MSOE, 7:26.0
LW V4 A Lineup: Andrew Hamilton (cox), Thomas Walker, Steve Knopp, Kyle James, Derek Sachs
LW V4 B Lineup: Wilson Hoppe (cox), Marcelo Buxton, Jacob Buboltz, Jacob Weber, Tyler Stevens

Freshmen Eight A/B
1. Wisconsin A, 6:09.0; 2. Wisconsin B, 6:18.3; 3. Minnesota A, 6:40.2; 4. Minnesota B, 6:57.4
F8 A Lineup: Arthur Condor (cox), Cole Reavill, Dylan Adams, Kyle McCarthy, Nathan Petersen, Benjamin Waller, Tim Zogleman, Benjamin Pike, Jonathon Thickens
F8 B Lineup: Wilson Hoppe (cox), Taylor Steeno, Jacob Kruchoski, Thomas Wennerstrum, Jacob Buboltz, Thomas McDonald, Zachary Gasick, Joseph Brunner, Jordan Kyhos


Freshman Four A/B
1. Wisconsin A, 6:47.3; 2. Wisconsin B, 6:49.4; 3. Minnesota, 7:16.8; 4. MSOE, 7:29.4
F4 A Lineup: Arthur Condor (cox), Cole Reavill, Nathan Petersen, Benjamin Pike, JonathonThickens
F4 B Lineup: Wilson Hoppe (cox), Taylor Steeno, Jacob Kruchoski, Marcelo Buxton, Tyler Stevens

Freshman Four C/D
1. Wisconsin C, 7:05.2; 2. Minnesota C, 7:22.1; 3. Wisconsin D, 7:29.4; 4. Minnesota D, 7:36.0
F4 C Lineup: Claude Vandevender (cox), Thomas Wennerstrum, Thomas McDonald, Joseph Brunner, Zachary Gasick
F4 D Lineup: Kevin Reed (cox), Jared Gordon, Ross Gundlach, Caleb Ballweg, Jordan Kyhos