KANSAS CITY, Kan. After losing possession of the Kansas Cup during the 2007 season, the Kansas State rowers reclaimed the trophy this year after the Wildcats defeated Kansas Saturday at the Wyandotte County Lake in Kansas City, Kan. K-State captured wins in both Varsity Eight races to be elevated to the 13-8 victory over the Jayhawks.

“It is a good rivalry that the athletes really get into,” head coach Pat Sweeney said. “It is great to come away with wins in the Varsity races and with the team trophy as well.”

Kansas jumped to an early 8-0 lead after rowing to the wins in the Novice 4+ and Novice 8+ races. The Second Varsity 8+ race followed the Novice competitions, and KU jumped off the start to an early 3-4 seat lead. Once the Wildcats settled into their race rhythm, they pulled the Jayhawks in. K-State powered past KU to earn the lead by the 500-meter mark and never looked back, eventually building its lead to as much as eight seconds. KU challenged slightly in the final sprint, but the Wildcats held them off to cross the line 3.9 seconds ahead. The Wildcats pulled within three points after finishing with a time of 7:25.9 while KU crossed the line at 7:29.7.

With the trophy on the line, the First Varsity 8+ took to the water. K-State had a very aggressive start and claimed a lead from the beginning. The Wildcats continued to pull away from the Jayhawks the remainder of the way. K-State captured a six-second win in the race to earn eight points and bring the Cats to the five-point victory. K-State pulled out a 7:16.0 effort to take the win from Kansas who clocked a time of 7:22.7.

“I am really pleased with the Varsity boats, as they performed quite well,” Sweeney said. “Both boats went out with strong, aggressive starts, dominating the races immediately. They held good length and rhythm to keep pulling away from KU.”

The Wildcat win gives K-State the sweep of dual cups against KU for the season, as the Cats took the Sunflower Showdown title in November with a 16-9 score. The triumph in the Kansas Cup marks the third time in four years for K-State to hoist the trophy as the Wildcats were the victor in 2005 and 2006.

K-State will return to competition outside of its home area next week as the Wildcats travel to Oak Ridge, Tenn., to take part in the annual Southern IRAs. For more information on K-State rowing, please visit www.kstatesports.com.

Kansas Cup Results

Final: Kansas State 13, Kansas 8

Novice 4+ (3 points): 1. KU 8:25.1 2. KSU 8:53.3

Novice 8+ (5 points): 1. KU 7:12.8 2. KSU 7:29.8 3. KU B’ 8:07.9 **race as not full 2000M due to floating start**

Second Varsity 8+ (5 points): 1. KSU 7:25.9 2. KU A’ 7:29.7 3. KU B’ 7:47.2

First Varsity 8+ (8 points): 1. KSU 7:16.0 2. KU 7:22.7