Normally, finishing fifth in a crew race is not a time for cheers, but for the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), it meant the team wasn’t far behind dominant company. That was the case after the Tritons’ performance in the San Diego Crew Classic’s Copley Cup final at Mission Bay on April 3. when they became the first San Diego boat to advance to the finals in the 38 years the  races have been run. For a school seeking an athletic jump from Division 2 to Division I, this effort was huge. UCSD’s crew headed to Newport on April 9 to compete against the University of Southern California; the University of California, Los Angeles; UC Irvine and the University of San Diego.  On April 16, the crew heads to Oak Ridge, Tenn., to face off with Georgetown, George Washington, Temple and Jacksonville. As expected in the San Diego Crew Classic, perennial favorites University of California, Berkeley (5 minutes, 45.9 seconds) and Stanford University (5:57.75) finished first and second, followed by Michigan and Oregon State. After UCSD’s first-day qualifying time of 6:01.57, it appeared to be enough to snare third place, but coach Zach Johnson said his crew was not as strong as it could have been at the midpoint of the 2,000-meter event. The USC women surged over the final 750 meters to win their third Jessop-Whittier Cup in 6:32.9. It was their first cup title since 2007. About 3,400 rowers competed in the two-day multiple competition. To become one of the nation’s top 20 teams, Johnson said you need a good recruiting program and a school that attracts fine students.   “And we have that,” he said.  “I think we’re on a par with Cal, Stanford and Columbia, academically, and what better place to live than in San Diego.” “The biggest thing for us is we’ve become more of a nationally recognized program being looked at by high school rowers,” Johnson said.  He compared UCSD’s efforts with that of Butler University, which reached the NCAA’s basketball final four. As the crew mentor for five years, he admits that things have been slow until now. “We would average four to six recruits each year, but for this class, we have 20 freshmen and 11 transfers from other programs,” he said.  “We have some big guys matched up with our lighter, swifter athletes.” As for the school’s jump to Division I, he said they have passed the NCAA feasibility test.  He indicated that the Big West Conference was interested in having UCSD join. “If we can go to Division I, it will be great to show what we are capable of doing,” said  Johnson. “We have athletes who have done exceptionally well in Division 2.” Coxswain Shawn Kuo, at five-feet, five-inches tall and weighing 122 pounds, is the driving force in the mix. He sets the pace and calls the strokes.  Kuo said he was pleased with the crew’s show of passion and aggressiveness. Crew members are senior Justin Gordon, sophomore Edwin Clement, junior Drew Lawyer, junior Brandon Gonzalez, senior Benton Sparks, junior Eric Smith, sophomore Ross Bell and sophomore Drew Madden. “We’re a very young group,” Johnson said of his 45-member team of junior varsity and freshmen shells.