As if the crews themselves were not fast enough, today's DI semis were run in a screaming tailwind that ripped down the course at Mercer. The water was bouncy, and we saw a few bobbles here and there, ranging from small to full-blown crabs.

In all, four teams managed to get all three of their crews through to the A-Finals; Stanford, Texas, Washington and Yale. Interestingly, no team won all three of their semis; Stanford won their 1V and 2V semis, Texas, Washington, Princeton and Yale won the other races. Tomorrow's finals will be absurdly competitive.

Stanford 2V

On the clock, Stanford's closest competitors today was the Yale 1V; the Yale crew has been peaking absolutely on point this weekend, in each round of racing up to this point.

"Tapering for NCAAs can be tricky when our conference championship is two weeks prior," said Yale coach Will Porter. "We cannot train through the Ivy championships so depending on the year we modify what we do."

Yale 1V

The Yale women were not necessarily favored to be in this position going into the weekend, but for Porter, the team's inward focus has paid off. "I really focus in on my crews. I have my hands full getting them going, I don’t have time to look around for outside motivation," he said. "There is plenty of motivation to get these guys going right in front of us. We focus on the challenge of covering the distance."

Stanford's 1V and 2V eights each posted the fastest times in their events; the Cardinal will be a tough out tomorrow.

Princeton 2V

Also in the hunt is Texas, last year's DI champs. “Once we get to the second day of NCAAs, we need to bring everything we’ve got, so it’s maximum effort, emotion and focus," said Texas coach Dave O'Neill. "It’s good to get all boats into the A finals, and that’s always a big focus for us.”

“Everyone in our program is aware of the responsibility and expectations of those racing, and it’s great to see everyone step up to the challenge. We about those racing having a real responsibility to represent everyone who isn’t competing, so everyone takes pride in the performed of the team.”

Texas Four

The Texas Four posted the fastest time in their event today, and have to be considered the favorites tomorrow.

“Our Four was terrific, and they’re just getting faster," said O'Neill. "They rowed beautifully in the second half of that race, and it was great to see them get the win. This is first time racing at the championship for Dani Thiermann, Jess Colbran, and Paris West, and they keep getting faster.”

This is the seventh NCAA in a row that Texas has qualified all three crews for the Grands.

Washington Four

The lanes and crews for tomorrow's A-Finals look like this:

The finish line will be busy on Sunday