IRVING, Texas – Five squads will descend on Lake Melton in Oak Ridge, Tenn., on Sunday, May 16, all vying for the 2021 American Athletic Conference Women’s Rowing Championship. The action begins at 9 a.m. Eastern and will air live on ESPN+. Live results will be available here.
 
Oak Ridge will host the championship for the first time and it will be the fifth consecutive championship to be contested in a new locale.
 
UCF looks to defend its title after winning the previous five crowns. SMU finished second in 2019, while Tulsa was the runner-up in 2015-18.
 
The Mustangs come in looking for their first American Athletic Conference title and are ranked No. 12 in the latest USRowing/Pocock CRCA national rankings.
 
The team championship and NCAA automatic qualifier will be determined by the points accrued in the three NCAA events: Varsity 8, Second Varsity 8 and Varsity 4. The teams will also compete in the Second Varsity 4.
 
SMU is seeded first in the Varsity 8 and Second Varsity 8 and second in the Varsity 4. UCF is seeded first in the V4, second in the V8 and third in the 2V8. Tulsa is seeded second in the Second Varsity 8 and third in the Varsity 8 and Varsity 4. Temple is seeded fourth in all three events, while Sacramento State is seeded fifth.
 
The American’s team champion will earn automatic qualification to the 2021 NCAA Rowing Championships, to be held May 28-30 at Nathan Benderson Park in Sarasota, Fla.
 
Order of Events
Second Varsity 4 – 9 a.m. ET/8 a.m. CT
Varsity 4 – 9:15 a.m. ET/8:15 a.m. CT
Second Varsity 8 – 9:30 a.m. ET/8:30 a.m. CT
Varsity 8 – 9:45 a.m. ET/8:45 a.m. CT
 
* Awards ceremony approximately 45 minutes after last race