SAN BRUNO, Calif. – The West Coast Conference announced the addition of UC San Diego as an affiliate member in rowing on Wednesday.
Prior to joining the conference as a full-time member next year, the Tritons will join the West Coast Conference in rowing as an affiliate for the upcoming 2027 season.
“We are excited to strengthen the level of competition in West Coast Conference rowing by welcoming UC San Diego as an affiliate member this season,” said West Coast Conference Commissioner Stu Jackson. “It’s great to have this head start on our shared future with the Tritons as they begin their conference integration by competing as a rowing affiliate in 2027. We’re looking forward to both UC San Diego and UC Santa Barbara joining the WCC as full-time members next academic year.”
The addition of UC San Diego in rowing gives the West Coast Conference seven teams for the 2027 season. The Tritons will join Portland, Saint Mary's, San Diego, Santa Clara, Seattle U and fellow affiliate member Creighton for the upcoming season. UC San Diego finished fifth at the 2026 CAA Championships. Prior to transitioning to the Division I level in 2020-21, the Tritons made numerous appearances at the Division II NCAA Championships, including the varsity eight finishing in second place in 2018.
"Women's Rowing joining the West Coast Conference this fall is a great first step for our department,” said UC San Diego Director of Athletics Andy Fee. “This program has built a reputation for competing at a high level, and the WCC gives them a conference home that matches that ambition. It's also a preview of what's ahead for the rest of Triton Athletics when we officially join the league on July 1, 2027. I couldn't be prouder of our scholar-athletes and coaches for representing UC San Diego as we begin this next chapter."
Last season, former affiliate member Oregon State won the 2026 West Coast Conference championship and went on to finish 18th overall at the NCAA Championships.
About the West Coast Conference
The West Coast Conference, founded in 1952, is a premier NCAA Division I conference with a longstanding history of national competitive excellence and institutions of great academic distinction. Guided by its “We Rise in the West” identity, the conference is represented throughout the Western region’s largest cities with a pronounced coastal footprint. Conference membership is driven by championship ambition and core values of integrity, respect, collaboration, innovation, inclusiveness and the holistic well-being of its student-athletes. For more information, visit WCCsports.com and follow the West Coast Conference on X, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok @WCCsports.
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program has begun a new era as a member of The Big West in NCAA Division I. The 24-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 83 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 39 have garnered prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 90 percent, the highest rate among public institutions in NCAA Division I or II. For more information on the Tritons, visit UCSDtritons.com or follow UC San Diego Athletics on social media @UCSDtritons.