Princeton tops Hoyas on Potomac

This weekend, all four crews were in action, scattered across the Mid-Atlantic region. Princeton women led the competition, winning regattas in both the open and lightweight divisions. Both the men's heavyweights and lightweights, meanwhile, had to settle for second-place finishes in three-team races.

The women's lightweight crew (6-0) reinforced its No. 1 national ranking Saturday by defeating No. 4 Georgetown on its home water along the Potomac River in Washington, D.C. The first varsity boat finished in six minutes, 3.8 seconds to preserve its perfect record and win the Class of 2006 Cup. The Hoyas were 5.5 seconds behind the Tigers, who also bested Georgetown in the second varsity race. Georgetown did manage to gain a victory in the novice eight.

"Our coxswains handled the tricky water and unfamiliar course very well," head coach Paul Rassam said. "They deserve much of the credit for our wins out there."

The No. 7 women's open crew (6-4) also came away victorious Saturday, defeating Bucknell, Dartmouth and Penn on Lake Carnegie. With a close win over Dartmouth in the varsity eight race, the Tigers held onto the Class of 1984 Trophy, which they have not relinquished since it came into existence in 1985. Princeton's time of 6:39.6 was two seconds ahead of the Big Green, and all four teams in the race finished within 10 seconds of each other. Penn finished in third, with Bucknell just four seconds behind.

Princeton's second varsity eight picked up another win, topping Dartmouth by nine seconds. The Tigers also pulled out victories in the varsity four and the freshman four. Princeton did not compete in the novice eight race, which Penn won easily.

The men's heavyweights (5-1) were also on Lake Carnegie over the weekend, rowing for the Compton Cup in their annual showdown with MIT and Ivy League rival Harvard. The Tigers took the Cup last season and were hoping to retain it, but on Saturday the Crimson proved to be very tough competition.

Harvard edged out the Tigers by just 1.5 seconds in the first varsity eight race with a time of 5:54.3. MIT lagged behind both of its Ivy League competitors by more than 30 seconds.

In the second varsity eight competition, Harvard won by a wider margin of about 10 seconds. The Crimson beat out Princeton by about 15 seconds to win the third varsity eight race and completed the sweep by taking the novice eight race by a five-second margin over the Tigers' boat.

Though the team could not beat Harvard, the weekend still provided valuable experience for the young team.

"It was a great race, but we came out on the wrong side of it," head coach Curtis Jordan said. "We went into that race to win and we didn't. We have a difficult three weeks ahead of us when we will row against Yale and Cornell, Brown and then Easterns, so we have to get better each week."

The men's lightweights (5-2) also earned a runner-up finish in a three-team regatta hosted by Penn on the Schuylkill River. The first varsity eight was able to top the Quakers on their home water, but after beating Georgetown earlier in the season, Princeton was unable to complete the season sweep, as the Hoyas took the race by two seconds over the Tigers.

Princeton did manage victories in all the other races it competed in Saturday, including the second varsity eight and the novice eight competitions.

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Next weekend, the men's lightweights will be home on Lake Carnegie at the annual HYP regatta, while the men's heavyweights will take on Ivy rivals Yale and Cornell in Derby, Conn.

On the women's side, the open team will row in a four-team regatta with Georgetown, Virginia and Notre Dame.

The lightweights will face No. 5 Radcliffe on the Charles River in Cambridge, Mass.