Just 500 meters into the Eastern Sprints men's heavyweight grand final on Lake Quinsigamond in Worcester, Mass., on Sunday, it was clear the race would come down to two boats: Princeton and Harvard.
Both crews had gone out extremely fast, and by the 1000-meter mark, the Tigers trailed the Crimson by half a boat length with the rest of the field languishing well behind. Each squad made moves — Harvard extending its lead by a seat or two, and Princeton cutting it right back — throughout the second half of the race. As the two boats made their final sprints, the race was still in reach for either squad.
It would be the Crimson who crossed the line first, holding off the Tigers by a mere 1.14 seconds, or roughly four seats.
"We expected it to come down to a fight at the end," junior Steve Coppola said. "We were surging, but we just couldn't pull it off in the end. I'm happy, though, with how well we raced the piece."
The victory was Harvard's second of the season over Princeton. On April 16 at Lake Carnegie, the Crimson topped the Tigers, then ranked No. 1 in the nation, by a significantly wider margin. Harvard, now No. 1 nationally, remains the only squad to have topped Princeton, ranked No. 4.
The crews will meet once more this season, at IRAs, the national championship race. The regatta will be held in Camden during the first week of June.
"We think that we have a legitimate shot at a national championship, and that's what we're going to go out to do," Coppola said. "I don't think that we really have to do too much differently in order to win. If we race a good race, tactically and efficiently, then there is no reason why we can't."
Despite the first varsity boat's loss, the Tigers still won the overall point competition earning the Rowe Cup. Princeton's second varsity and freshman boat both placed second as well, picking up valuable points.
Women's open shocked by Yale
After an undefeated regular season, the No. 1 nationally-ranked women's open crew entered Sunday's Eastern Sprints in Camden as the heavy favorite. At the end of the day, however, they left with silver medals hanging around their necks.
As expected, the Tigers led for most of the race, but Yale caught and passed Princeton with roughly 500 meters to go. The Tigers — who had defeated the Elis by five seconds on April 16 in New Haven, Conn. — could not respond. Yale held on for a 2.4 second win, finishing in 6.15.60.
Princeton was provided with some consolation by its overall showing, placing boats in the grand final of all six events: the first and second varsity eights, the first and second varsity fours and the first and second freshman eights. The second varsity eight was the lone crew to claim gold.
The Tigers will get a chance to win back their No. 1 national ranking in two weeks, as they head to Sacramento, Calif. for national championships from May 27-29.
Women's lightweight upset
The No. 1 nationally-ranked women's lightweight crew was felled by Wisconsin at Eastern Sprints in Camden on Sunday, as the two squads continued their burgeoning battle for national dominance. After rowing neck and neck for the first half of the race, the Badgers pulled away at roughly the 1,000-meter mark and cruised to a nearly five-second margin of victory, handing Princeton its first loss of the year.
The Tigers did claim two races on the day, winning both the second varsity eight and the varsity four races.
Princeton will get another shot at Wisconsin on June 5th in Camden, when the squads battle for the IRA national championship.
Men's lightweight struggles
The men's lightweight crew turned in a disappointing finish at Eastern Sprints on Sunday, as the top varsity boat failed to qualify for the grand finals. The Tigers placed third in the petite final, with the Eastern and Ivy League championship going to Harvard.
The second and third varsity eights did somewhat better, finishing fifth and third, respectively.
Princeton's top finish came from its freshman boat, which finished second to Navy by just over a second. The rest of the field, including all of the Tigers' Ivy League rivals, finished well back.
The lightweights conclude their season with IRAs in Camden in the first week of June.
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