Lightweights keep Class of 1999 Cup

Just one week after pulling past No. 4 Georgetown in dramatic fashion, top-ranked Princeton performed just as well against one of its biggest rivals, No. 3 Radcliffe, and added another strong race to its perfect season. The Tigers took two of three races against the Crimson, with the first varsity boat finishing in seven minutes, 13.08 seconds to edge Radcliffe by three seconds.

With the victory, Princeton retained possession of the Class of 1999 Cup, which it won by more than 10 seconds in 2007.

The Tigers have done extremely well this season, defeating several well-regarded opponents. Rowing on home waters one week earlier, Princeton outpaced the No. 4 Hoyas by more than 10 seconds in the first varsity matchup and took all three races overall.

The Tigers also won their second varsity race in 7:22.4, with the Crimson clocking in at 7:35.2.

If the lightweights evince any weakness, it is in the smaller boats. Princeton’s varsity four finished in 8:53.6, seven seconds behind Radcliffe’s boat. In its first race, the varsity four finished fourth against the University of Central Florida, though it won its race against Georgetown one week later.

While its lightweight teammates defended home waters, the No. 7 open women hit the road, heading to Hanover, N.H., to compete for the Class of 1984 Trophy against Dartmouth and Penn.

The Tigers came into the race especially determined, as they had stumbled during last weekend’s race away from home. Princeton fell to No. 2 Yale and, more surprisingly, was beaten out by a tenth of a second by then-No. 12 Tennessee. Rowing against two other Ivy League crews, the Tigers bounced back handily and dominated the competition.

Princeton ultimately won four of the five races. A stellar performance from the first varsity eight was the highlight of the day, as the Tigers crossed the line in 5:27.9. The Big Green trailed at 5:35.0, with the Quakers closing out the race three seconds later.

The second varsity eight had a more exciting finish, outpacing Dartmouth by slightly more than a second. The 2V eight posted a time of 5:44.6. The novice eight also performed well, winning its race in 5:53.6. The Big Green once again came in second with a time of 6:01.7.

Penn finished third in all three eight-person races.

Princeton’s varsity four competed in a tight race, finishing in 6:25.1 to defeat runner-up Dartmouth’s 6:27.8.

On Saturday, the open women return home to face George Washington in their final regular-season race, while the lightweight women face off against Wisconsin on Lake Carnegie earlier that morning.