BEIJING -- The U.S. women's eight crew, which includes Anna Goodale of Camden and Elle Logan of Boothbay Harbor, won the gold medal Sunday evening at the Shunyi Rowing-Canoeing Park.

The men's eight crew, with Portland's Wyatt Allen, won the bronze, finishing behind Canada and Great Britain.

In the women's race, the U.S. took the lead in the first few strokes and never looked back, opening up a seven-seat lead.

"It's an incredible feeling when your dreams come true,'' said Goodale. "From the first stroke we had confidence in each other.''

When the race finished, Logan, seated in front of Goodale, slapped the water with her left hand and Goodale collapsed backward.

The women won with a time of 6:05.34. The Netherlands stunningly finished second in 6:07.22 while Romania, the three-time defending Olympic champ, was third at 6:07.25.

In the men's race, Canada, with Bates College graduate Andrew Byrnes on board, again took the early lead.

The Canadians won in 5:23.89 followed by Great Britain (5:25.11) and the U.S. (5:25.34).

"You certainly can't complain about walking away with a medal,'' said Allen, who won gold in Athens with the men's eight. "This one was a battle.''