Unfamiliar waters are undaunting

Though both teams left the Bubble this weekend, Princeton still managed to divide and conquer. In Cambridge, Mass., the No. 6 open women defeated No. 13 Harvard/Radcliffe and Cornell for the Class of 1975 Cup, posting a season-best time of six minutes, 45.7 seconds. Meanwhile, in Orlando, Fla., Princeton’s No.1 lightweights pulled out an eight-second victory over No. 7 University of Central Florida, completing the 2,000-meter course in 7:25.3. The 2V crew finished in third in 7:41.1. The open and lightweight 1V boats remain undefeated this season.

Ironically, the Tigers who flew to Florida faced more challenging weather than their teammates. Winds produced choppy conditions for the lightweight 1V team, and the water grew rougher just in time for the day’s later races.

“While we practice rowing into headwinds and with wake on our own lake, the ocean-like chop was certainly a new element,” senior captain Caroline English said.

In the end, Princeton’s fours, making their first appearances of the season, could not match UCF’s teams. The novice four finished second in 9:12.8, followed by the V4 in fourth at 10:23.6.

In contrast, the open women were blessed with pristine conditions on the Charles River. This set the stage for the 1V’s impressive performance, six seconds faster than the Crimson and 12 seconds faster than the Big Red.

“We were able to keep lengthening our lead steadily through the first half of the race,” senior captain Kristin Haraldsdottir said. “In the last 600 meters, Harvard advanced, but we were able to counter their move.”

The novice teams also secured wins, though the novice eight battled within three seats of Harvard for the entire race. The N4’s 8:11.1 was 20 seconds faster than second-place Cornell, and the novice eight gritted it out to finish in 7:03.5, just a second ahead of the Big Red’s freshman team. The Crimson defeated the Tigers’ 2V and V4 boats, who rowed 7:05.9 and 7:58.7, respectively.

“We came off the line powerful[ly] and moving together,” sophomore Phoebe White said of the 2V team. “Around the 1,250, though, we lost our rhythm a little bit. We were disappointed, but we know that our boat has a lot of fight.”

The Tigers have done well to build confidence this far in the season, and they will need that resolve this Saturday at Lake Carnegie. The open women will face No. 2 Yale and No. 9 Tennessee at 10 a.m., and the lightweights will host No. 3 Georgetown for the Class of 2006 Cup at 11:15 a.m.

The Bulldogs will pose a credible threat to the open team’s perfect record. Though course conditions can drastically affect times, the Bulldogs have consistently performed under seven minutes this season, posting a 6:05 on April 5 on the Housatonic River in Connecticut. Princeton did surpass expectations, though, when it upset then-No. 3 Brown on March 29, proving that the Tigers are undaunted by highly ranked crews.

The lightweights last faced Georgetown last year on the Potomac River in Virginia, where the then-No.1 Tigers beat the fourth-ranked Hoyas by five seconds. This year, the contest should be tighter ? only two seconds separated Princeton from No. 2 Stanford on March 30 when the Tigers edged the Cardinal.

“We have been training hard for the past couple of weeks going into Georgetown,” English said. “We raced Stanford on their home course, and they fought for the entire race. On our home water, Georgetown can expect the same from us.”

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Arriving from north, south and west, this Saturday’s challengers would do well to respect Princeton’s potential on its home water ? both Tiger crews fully intend to send their opponents straight home in as short a time as possible.