5/18/2010 – Fast Racing in Worcester — Inches and Bow Balls Decide EARC and EAWRC

Folks…

It was a day of mixed results for the Blue Crews at the EARC Sprints on Lake Quinsigamond and the EAWRC Sprints on the Cooper River.
Yale women take Ivy League Championship beating the Princeton Tigers by a deck in the 1V. Return to Derby with most of the trophies including the overall championship. Bulldogs medal in all events — 1 gold – 1V, 3 silver – 3V4+, 3V8+, 3V4+B and 1 bronze – 2V
Yale 150s place 3rd in Jope Cup, with 3rd in 1V, and marked improvement over HYP performance. Princeton LWs win 1V, 2V and Jope Cup. Harvard 2nd with win in 1F. Bulldog crews win three medals — silver [2V] and 2 bronze [1V and 2F]
Navy LWs finish 5th in Jope Cup and 5th in Grand finals in 1V, 2V, 1F. Highlight for Navy is Plebe 2F taking gold medals in dominate performance. 3V take bronze.
Yale HWs finish 11th in Rowe Cup. 3V only Eli boat to qualify for Grand Final and finishes 5th. 1V finishes 3rd by inches in morning heat, fails to qualify for Grand Final [Columbia 5:42.373, Wisco + 0.069 seconds, Yale + 0.151 seconds]. Harvard 1V and 1F take gold and Crimson wins Rowe Cup. Princeton Tigers win silver in 1V, 1F and finish 2nd in Rowe Cup. Pre-regatta favorite Brown wins 2V, bronze in 1V and places 3rd in Rowe Cup.
Navy HWs place 12th in Rowe Cup. Plebe 2F only Midshipmen to qualify for Grand Finals and take silver.
Navy Women qualify one boat for Grand Finals and finish 6th in 3V4+B. Other four finishes 7th. Eights [1V, 2V and 3V] each finish 13th and squad finishes 12th overall.
EARC Sprints –

Harvard HWs and Princeton LWs Top Crews at Quinsigamond

The form book was absolutely shredded in the morning’s heats in the Men’s V8 at the EARC Sprints after an incredible series of races in all three heats. Topping the list in the first heat was an “instant classic” row from 12th-seeded Dartmouth, who from lane 4 paced the field to the event’s fastest time of the morning, beating #1 seed Brown and knocking out #6 and #7 seeds Syracuse and Northeastern.
“They had great spirit,” said Dartmouth head coach Topher Bordeau after the heat. “I can’t explain it, and I am glad I don’t have to!”

Things didn’t get any less wooly in the second heat; even without an upset, fifth seeded Princeton held on for the 2nd Grand Final spot, just a nose ahead of a charging Cornell, with both of those crews just down to Harvard.

Not to be outdone, the Columbia Heavyweights went for broke, winning their heat from the #9 seed in a photo-photo-finish, with #4 Wisconsin and #3 Yale just behind, all three crews finishing within 22/100s of each other. Columbia in lane 3, Wisco in lane 2 and Yale in lane 1:

Lower seeds also made some noise in the Varsity Lightweight Eight, with Nick Baker’s Penn LWs nipping a higher seeded Georgetown crew to nab a spot in the final, while Dartmouth (a late peak from the whole Hanover boathouse today, perhaps?) knocking out Cornell to earn a berth in the Grand Final. [Penn LWs finished 6th in 1V and 2V Grand Finals, a solid improvement for 1st year coach Nick Baker over 2009, when the Quaker LWs finished 8th and 9th].

The days’ tailwind (for the record, a sprightly NNW cross tail that was between 10-20 mph for the afternoon) definitely contributed to some fast times and a little chop in the afternoon [so much for the forecast]. Conditions varied on the day, but with the consistent and building tail wind, crews were able to attack the water and leverage higher stroke ratings.

Although they both upset a higher-seeded opponent, and one who had beaten them earlier this season, the Princeton Lightweight V8+ and the Harvard Heavyweight V8+ had distinctly different races en route to the awards dock. In Harvard’s case, the Crimson nosed out of the field along with Princeton and Brown in the 2nd 500 meters or so, then steadily built their advantage over the Princeton heavies, who have decidedly put themselves back in the picture, and Brown, who just couldn’t seem to get tracked in this one, rowing off in lane 6 as a result of their morning upset by Dartmouth.

Harvard celebrated their first Sprints title in the V8 since 2007 with appropriate ebullience, but were not taking anything for granted. “I think you always hope for this, but you can certainly never expect it,” said Harvard’s Harry Parker after the racing. “We nursed the crew through exams, and just told them to ‘go for it!’ today.”

By winning the V8 and the Frosh eight, Harvard also sealed up the Rowe Cup for heavyweight team performance, also for the first time since 2007.

In the 1V, the Crimson HWs took an early lead and pushed to a steady and convincing win. Rowing the body of the race at 39, Harvard pressed to a half length lead over Princeton and Brown at mid-race with Dartmouth only 3 seats further back of the leaders. Early in the 3rd 500, Harvard took a big move and 5 more seats on the Tigers with Brown falling 2 seats back of Princeton. With 500 to go Brown moved up to 40 spm and challenged Princeton. The Crimson and Tigers both answered, with Harvard crossing the finish line in 5:33.007, nearly a length [2.5 seconds] ahead of Princeton who were 1/2 length [1.41 seconds] ahead of Brown. Wisco finished 4th moving through Dartmouth in the final strokes, pressing their bow ball ahead by the narrowest of margins, 35/1,000s of a second. Columbia trailed the field by open-water.

By stark contrast, in the Varsity Lightweight 8+ Grand, Princeton put themselves ahead early and then seemed to have the speed and composure to fend off anything that Harvard threw their way. The race was a study in differing styles, with observers both on shore and in the radio commentary noting that Princeton was kicking up more water off their blades than Harvard was, but with Harvard not able to parlay that smoothness into any kind of dent into Princeton’s lead. At the finish, Princeton had their boat length, reversing a 4-seat defeat to the Crimson from two weeks previous, while Harvard just held off a fast-finishing Yale crew for the Silver.

“We basically spent 8 days working on getting an extra 3 seats after that race [on May 1st],” said first-year Princeton lightweight head coach Marty Crotty. “I don’t know if it’s more demoralizing being down 4 seats or 8 seats, but we knew that Harvard was very good and that we’d have to do the work in the middle 1,000 of the race. The guys did a great job hitting their margins at every point of the race.”

The Yale lightweight varsity didn’t find the yellow brick road, but they did find their way to the medal dock after the 1V and 2V races today on windy Lake Quinsigamond. The Y150 varsity, seeded 5th, chased top-ranked Harvard in both the heat and the final. The final was a classic Sprints race, Princeton setting the hot pace early, with Harvard and Yale giving chase, separating themselves from the pack ahead of Navy, Dartmouth, and Penn.

With a following wind and lots at stake, Navy hit 49 spm off the line, with Yale at 47 and Princeton at 43. [Wisco starts earlier in the afternoon were “off the chart”, in excess of 50 spm]. When Yale and Harvard settled bow to bow at 35 1/2, the Tigers remained 3 strokes higher and ahead by 2 seats. Dartmouth and Navy were locked up, 3 seats further back.

Princeton rowed with “ruthless abandon” in the second 500 and a mid-race was 3/4 length ahead of Harvard who had taken 1/2 length on Yale. Navy was 8 seats further back with 2 seats on Dartmouth. With 500 to go Princeton still maintained a 7 seat lead on the Crimson with the Yale 150s 3/4 length back of Harvard in 3rd. Navy and Dartmouth were out of the medals, but too close to call.

Yale pressed to the finish early. With 25 meters to go, Princeton was rating 42 a full length ahead of Harvard at 40 with Yale walking on the Cantabs. At the finish, Princeton maintained the length and it was “too close to call” between Yale and Harvard. Dartmouth and Navy finished a length out of the medals, with Steve Perry’s Navy LWs falling to his former Dartmouth squad by 1 seat [0.188 seconds].

Yale charged hard in the last 500, but couldn’t close the gap all the way, finishing officially .313 seconds back of Harvard, and 2.58 out of first. This in stark contrast with the Goldthwait Cup results at the HYP two weeks earlier. Princeton had lost to Harvard by 0.7 seconds and Yale was last, 11.9 seconds back of Harvard and 11.2 seconds behind the Tigers. Let’s see what Coach Andy Card can do to continue this improvement as these three crews as well as Navy will seek the IRA National LW title on the Cooper River in just less than 3 weeks.

The Yale 2V had a solid row, not enough to beat Princeton in this case, but enough to clear the rest of the field, hold onto the number two rank, and close the gap with the Tigers. Princeton’s margin at the HYP was 4.5 seconds and at Sprints was reduced to 1.77 seconds.

In the LW 2V Grand Final, it was an exciting race with Princeton leading wire to wire, but with overlap amongst Princeton, Yale, Cornell and Navy through the opening 1,500 meters. At 400 meters into the race, Princeton, Yale, Cornell and Navy were tied with Harvard a half length back. At 500, with the Tigers at 37+ and Navy and Cornell each rating 35 1/2 spm, Princeton had 2 seats. In the 2nd 500, Princeton pushed its lead to 1/2 length over Cornell and Yale. Navy trailed in 3rd with Harvard moving into the Mids and now 1 seat back. Penn trailed the field by open water. At 750 to go, Princeton had 1 length on Yale, with 2 seats on Cornell, who had 1/2 length on Navy. Harvard was an additional 1/2 length back of the Navy 2V LWs. At 650 Yale made a big move at 38 1/2, Princeton answered at 37 1/2, but they Bulldogs began to cut into the Princeton lead. With 500 meters left in the race, the lead pack was in echelon. Princeton’s lead was only 3 seats over Yale, with Cornell and Navy each trailing by incremental 3 seat margins. Harvard was 3/4 length back, but moving into the Mids. At the finish, Princeton had 1.77 seconds on Yale with Cornell 3/4 length astern for bronze. In the final 500 meters, Harvard moved 3/4 length through Navy finishing one seat ahead [0.149 seconds] in fourth, 1/2 length back of the lead pack.

The Yale 150 1F finished just out of the medals in fourth, just .311 seconds, a deck length, out of bronze. Again, a late charge wasn’t enough on a windy day which saw Cornell come within one second of the course record. The Navy LW Plebes, seeded #2 finished 5th in the Grand Final, 2.2 seconds back of the Yale Freesh. Cornell led wire to wire, never ahead of Harvard by more than 3 seats. In the last 500 meters Harvard closed to within less than a deck at the finish [0.328 seconds]. Princeton trailed in 3rd by open water. At 1,000 meters the Yale Freesh were open water back of Princeton and Navy before beginning a press and sprint in advance of the final 500 meters, during which they rowed through the Plebes falling just short of Princeton.

The only medals and highlight of the racing day for Navy LWs was Matt Muffelman’s second Plebe’s grand final gold medal. Their winning time of 6:05.197, was an impressive 7.269 seconds faster than second-place Harvard. Yale’s 2F was third, nearly 2 length of open water [10.906 seconds] back of the Plebes.

The Midshipmen also finished third in the grand final of the third varsity competition with a 5:54.494 clocking, which was 4.105 seconds off of Cornell’s winning time. Harvard was 2nd and Yale finished 4th, less than a deck [.401 seconds] out of the medals, behind the Mids.

With each of Princeton and Harvard 1st Varsities having beaten the other once, the rubber match will come at the IRAs for the National title. Crotty wasn’t looking that far ahead. “Who knows? In three weeks, everything might be different!”

With wins in the Lightweight 2V and a well-earned bronze in the Lightweight Frosh eight, Princeton also reclaimed the Jope Cup for lightweight points, just ahead of Harvard.

The 2V events in fact saw the few races where the top seeds fared well today, with the Brown and the Princeton lightweights successfully defending their #1 rankings going in. The Brown heavies held off Cornell and Wisconsin, while Princeton beat Yale and Cornell for top honors on the lightweight side.

The Freshman racing provided some great fireworks to open the afternoon racing as the Cornell Frosh Lights ended Harvard’s previously undefeated season with a huge sprint for the win.

“We used our early-season loss to Harvard as motivation for today,” said Sean Healey, Cornell’s freshman lightweight coach. “They used that to refocus on the job of climbing up the hill to get ahead of Harvard, and they did an awesome job of doing that work.”

Judging from the photographic evidence of the racing, this one wasn’t a done deal at any point, even with 10 strokes to go.

It was nearly the same story in the Frosh heavyweight final, although Harvard’s finish in this one was almost palpable on shore; Princeton rowed a courageous race all the way down the course in an effort to claim the title, but very few crews on the lake today could have withstood what the Harvard crew threw down in the last 20 strokes or so. The final margin was half a second, and the final times (05:37.29 to Princeton’s 05:37.78) were as impressive as the race itself.

“We expected a challenge from all five crews out there today, particularly with the conditions here today” said Harvard Frosh coach Bill Manning. “These guys have done a better job of buying into the work ethic and attitude of the upperclassmen earlier in their Harvard careers than some previous years. These guys have bought in earlier, and the success they’ve enjoyed has been a direct result of that.”

Cornell’s bronze medal in this event, in addition to Cornell’s win in a four-boat Second Freshman Heavyweight Grand earlier in the afternoon likely indicates that the EARC heavyweight field is another consistent competitor stronger. Cornell also won the 3V lightweight eights race, besting a 7-boat field from Lane 0, well played! Navy claimed gold in the first final of the afternoon, the 2F Lightweight event.

Prior to the regatta we speculated whether Yale’s John Pescatore or Harvard’s Harry Parker could find the additional speed to defeat the Brown Bruins. In the end it was Parker and Princeton first year HW coach, Greg Hughes.

A number of coaches took their obligatory swims as well; Harry Parker has gone in before, but today he dismissed all efforts in this direction with a quick smile and no-nonsense wave “bye bye” as he left the awards dock, Rowe Cup in hand.

As winners of the HW1V and LW1V respectively, Harvard and Princeton are the Ivy League Champions for 2010. In Jope Cup overall LW competition, the top five were Princeton [37 points], Harvard [32], Yale [30], Cornell [25] and Navy [24]. In Rowe Cup overall HW competition, the top five were Harvard [37], Princeton [33], Brown [30], Cornell [28] and Wisconsin [27].

EARC Heavyweight Trophy winners:
Rowe Cup – Harvard
Worcester Bowl [1V] – Harvard
Richard A. Glendon Trophy [2V] – Brown
Kenneth F. Burns Trophy [1F] – Harvard
EARC Lightweight Trophy winners:
Jope Cup – Princeton
Joseph Wright Trophy [1V] – Princeton
Cornell Trophy [2V] – Princeton
Gary W. Kilpatrick Trophy [1F] – Cornell
Next for the Blue Crews.

Yale and Harvard HWs will move their training facilities at Gales Ferry and Red Top on the Thames River in New London, CT in preparation for the 145th Harvard-Yale Regatta, America’s oldest intercollegiate event. Crews will row upstream on Saturday 26 May finishing at Bartlett’s Cove — 0900 – Freshmen, 2 miles; 0945 – 2V, 3 miles; and 1045 – 1V, 4 miles. The 2 mile Combi race will start at 1700 on Friday.

Lots of work for both crews to transition to the longer distance and then back to 2,000 meter sprints for the IRA. A big challenge for the Yale HWs to recover from a disappointing performance at Worcester and to gather additional speed to take on the Crimson in New London and Camden.

The IRA National Championships will be held the following weekend, 3-5 June on the Cooper River in Camden, NJ. All but one event at the IRA, V4+, are now subject to invitation and qualification. The 1V8+ is limited to 18 entries, including the top nine from the EARC — With Navy finishing 10th and Yale 11th, both squads will need an at-large invitation if the field is not filled by other qualifiers — PAC-10 [3], WIRA [2], and SIRA, Dad Vail and ECAC National Invitational winners [1 each]. HW 2V and 1F may only participate in their respective 1V is entered in the 1V by qualification or invitation. In the LW 1V8+, there can be a maximum of 12 entries with 7 qualifying from the EARC [including Yale and Navy].

EARC Sprints –

Yale celebrates wins at EAWRC.

The 2010 EARWC Sprints Championship on the Cooper River in Camden Sunday saw many familiar faces on the medal stands at the end of the racing, with the Yale Bulldogs and Wisconsin Badgers both repeating in the varsity eight events.
The path may have been a little more difficult than in recent years, but the end result was just as sweet for the Yale women’s crew. Yale’s varsity eight captured the Eastern Sprints and Ivy League titles for the fourth time in the last six years, winning a thrilling grand final by a little more than a deck [0.777 seconds] over Princeton. The Bulldogs came in at 6:20.155, just ahead of the Tigers, who finished in 6:20.932. Brown trailed by open water in third, 11.65 seconds behind the Bulldogs.

Yale in lane 4 leads Princeton in lane 3 at the Finish of 1V

The victory capped another outstanding day on the Cooper River for Yale, which won the Charles Willing Team Trophy for overall supremacy for the second straight year, the third time in the last four years and for the fifth time in school history. All five Yale boats that competed at Sprints earned a medal.
“The team worked very, very hard to accomplish what we accomplished today,” said Yale head coach Will Porter. “To win the overall points trophy is amazing because of the adversity we’ve had to deal with this year. This has certainly been one of the most challenging years we’ve had.”

Yale’s varsity eight had finished nearly seven seconds behind Princeton on Apr. 17 during the regular season race. The Bulldogs, though, worked hard on improving their start, which helped make up the difference.

“Princeton is always so dynamic out of the gate that we knew we had to be with them to have a chance,” Porter said.

Yale had the lead for most of the race but never by more than a few seats.

The final of the Lightweight Varsity Eight solidified Wisconsin’s dominance of the lightweight events. Wisconsin had spent the spring winning race after race, and having that experience behind them only made them stronger. The test at the Sprints is a hard one, however, and Coach Erik Miller was still toying with line-ups as the May 16 event came into view. He knew that all the other teams, including Princeton and Radcliffe, were preparing to challenge the Midwestern lightweights who have become the team to beat.

Wisconsin led early in the race, but other crews still had contact with the Badgers. At about 1000 meters, Princeton was only about 4 seats back.

“I was hoping they (Wisco) had another gear….we have been working on putting together a whole race going all the way down the race course, and I was hoping they would be able to maintain a similar speed to what they did the first half of the race course,” says Coach Erik Miller.

Just after the 1000, Wisconsin did find another gear, and pulled away from the field even more, ultimately winning the race by 5 seconds over Princeton, with Radcliffe 3 seconds behind the Tigers.

In the morning, the open weight side of the racing was playing out almost exactly as predicted and seeded, with Yale, Princeton and Brown all winning their heats in the 1V and 2V Eights races without having to fight too hard for the placement. The finals in both the 2V and the Varsity Sunday were all-Ivy League, with Brown, Princeton, Yale, Columbia, Cornell, and Radcliffe filling lanes for the 2V; Brown, Princeton, Yale, Dartmouth, Cornell and Penn populating the Varsity Grand Final.

Princeton, Yale and Brown were the constants in these two finals; their dominion on the Sprints scene was one of the most notable statements of the weekend. Lori Dauphiny (Princeton), Will Porter (Yale) and John Murphy (Brown) have all produced consistently strong crews over the past few years; in this iteration of the Sprints, the question was simply who was going to lead this trio of boats. In the end, in the three so-called NCAA events, each of the three squads came away with one gold, one silver, and one bronze.

The Second Varsity Eight Grand Final began with Brown having the most effective start, but only 20 strokes in, Princeton pulled ahead. (This strong Princeton start, as it turns out, is what rivals Yale were concerned about in the Varsity race–more on this later). At 500 meters, Princeton was a hair ahead with Yale and Radcliffe side-by-side. Brown was at a higher rate, but Princeton remained composed and pulled ahead by another 8 seats, Yale within a deck of Brown. The race remained in that order going through the body of piece, with Princeton’s walk-on populated crew establishing themselves, and creating some concern for following years for their competitors. Princeton’s 2V was not in any way a discernible novice boat.

As the race unfolded, the Varsity Eight Final turned out to be a dual match between Yale and Princeton with the surprising absence of Brown in the fray. Princeton has had an aggressive start through the season, and Yale Coach Will Porter has made a mental note of that proficiency when instructing his own team in preparation. “I think that Princeton crew is an amazing crew,” Porter said. “If you race these crews ten times, it could easily turn out to be 5 and 5.”

On the water, the match-up was so close that it was hard to visualize from trailing officials boats without the proper angle. Yale figured out the start in this match, and that may have been what gave them the win. They were within a deck of Princeton in the first 30 strokes, and took the lead coming into the second 500; this lead was only relinquished (if at all) by a couple feet of deck throughout the race. At only 700 gone, it was Yale ahead by 2 seats over Princeton, with an unexpected span of open water over Brown. The separation from the field so early was what changed the tone of the race. It became a 2-boat race (Brown did arrive at the finish line in third, but it was just shy of 11 seconds behind the pair at the front, followed by Dartmouth in fourth a couple seconds back, Penn, and Cornell).

During the race, the boats appeared in their lanes, to draw their challengers into an intimate altercation. Princeton remained composed, but each stroke seemed to strengthen the Bulldogs–they had all the technique of the Tiger boat, but with perhaps a hair more horsepower within. As they came in site at the last 300 meters the shores were packed with every body present in Cooper River park squeezing for a view of the finish, Bulldogs finished eight tenths of a second ahead of the Tigers.

“I thought that Princeton was the crew to beat; having seen everyone and seeing how dynamic they (Princeton) are, and how talented they are, I just knew they were the ones to beat,” said Yale Head Coach Will Porter. “I felt if we kept contact, we could do it….they are so good at the start, so good at the first 1000 meters, if we could stay with them….” he summarizes, but adds to clarify, “We really don’t try to key too much off of other crews, but the way they were rowing this year, it forced us to pay attention.”

Yale has won the Sprints under Porter’s leadership in 2005, 2007, 2009 and now 2010. Once Porter got some traction in the Yale program, he and his athletes have become one of the most intimidating crews in the east and nationwide. At these Sprints, Yale also garnered the Charles Willing, Jr. Trophy for the team with the best performance overall, as well as the Sally Shoemaker Trophy – Ivy League Champions for the best finish among Ivy League Schools in the Varsity Eight.

“Last year was an unbelievable year for us, and we’ve come through a lot of adversity this season (he has four injured athletes right now), and just some freak things that are not rowing related, so I think that kind of adversity makes a team grow a little bit, and when we got here we were tougher as a group haven gotten through it.” He adds, “I’m just lucky to get to work with this caliber of kid every year. I know that we don’t find the kind of speed we found today without coaches like Lori (Dauphiny) and John (Murphy) in our league.”

A lot of the speed has been with Taylor Ritzel, current stroke and senior, in the boat. With athleticism and a carefree attitude hiding a hardened competitor, Ritzel is a senior leader that will be missed in the program next year. She was in the boat as a freshman when Yale won in 2007, then as starboard side stroke in 2009 and 2010.

In the second varsity eight grand final, the Bulldogs finished third with a time of 6:44.518. Princeton won in 6:35.998, followed by Brown at 6:40.798.

“Our second varsity is very young. There are three freshmen and four sophomores in the boat. For them to medal at Sprints is one heck of an experience,” Porter said. “I’ve been very hard on them, but they are very talented and can handle it.”

Yale’s varsity four finished second to Brown. The Bears came in at 7:10.852, nearly eight seconds faster than the Bulldogs.

In the third varsity eight, Yale placed second with a time of 6:50.321. Brown won in 6:45.331.

Yale’s 3V4+ B also finished second with a time of 7:34.162. Brown won in 7:30.527.

Navy’s day on the Cooper River was not nearly as successful or dominating as the Bulldogs. In each of the eights events, 1V, 2V and 3V, the Mids finished 13th. In fours, Navy failed to qualify for the Grand Final, finishing 7th overall in 3V4+. In the B level four grand final, Navy had it’s best finish of the regatta finishing 6th. In a two boat competition for 4V8+, Navy showed its squad depth, but lost to Cornell by “an easily” — 42.8 seconds.

Navy finished 12th in overall points for the Charles Willing Trophy, 4 points back of their Patriot League competition, Bucknell.
“In general, we are happy with the results of our afternoon races,” stated Navy head coach Mike Hughes. “The morning heats were tough. Some of the best teams in the country were paired in our heats. There were no second chances, no Repechage races. When you’re in the third level final, winning is what you need to do. The varsity four “A” crew won its petite final and beat some very highly ranked teams in the region in the process.”
The top squads in the regatta will be strong candidates for NCAA Championships on May 28-30 at Lake Natoma, CA. The 16-team field will be announced on Tuesday at 1700.

PAC-10 Championships –

While the largest number of nationally ranked women’s and HW and LW men’s crews were competing back East, the top two ranked HW Men’s 1st Varsities, Washington and Cal and four of the Women’s NCAA Division I squads were competing on Lake Natoma — Cal [#1], Stanford [5], Washington [7] and USC [8]. {Virginia [3], Michigan State [9] and Wisconsin [10] fill out the remainder of the top ten nationally ranked women’s squads.

The 2010 edition of the Pac-10 Championship saw the top-ranked Washington men’s Varsity 8+ win with a controlled race to complete a sweep of the men’s events for the Huskies. In a race that played out similar to last year’s IRA final, Cal jumped to a quick lead but were reeled in by Washington through the second 500. Washington’s base speed was just slightly faster during the majority of the race and pushed their lead to about a length with 500 meters remaining. Coming into the line, Cal threw everything at the Huskies but were unable to close the gap, losing by just a bit of open water.
Conditions on Lake Natoma were good with a varying head wind throughout the morning, nothing like the triple digit temperatures from 2009. The lake wasn’t a fast track on Sunday, so the sub 5:50 times by both Washington and Cal indicate that both crews are very quick this year heading to IRA’s in three weeks. Stanford was well off the pace in the varsity event, taking the bronze by a length of open water over Oregon State.

On the women’s side of things, Cal continued their impressive run this spring in the Varsity 8, holding off a determined Stanford eight to win by one second. The win also clinched the team championship for the Bears, defeating Stanford by one-half of a point.

The rest of the men’s racing was dominated by Washington, who won the 2V eight and Varsity 4 by a length each, and the Husky Freshmen eight won by a length of open water; all over second place Cal. That leaves each Washington boat undefeated for the spring heading to the IRA.

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You can find full articles from Navy and Yale Sports below as well as articles from www.row2k.com on EARC, EAWRC and Pac-10 Championships. Row2k also has photo and video galleries for all three regattas.

Thanks for the “cut and paste” assist from Row2k as well as the live commentary on the EARC from Gary Caldwell of the ECAC staff and live video and results from the PAC-10 folks. [My multi-tasking and multiple communications technology sources were challenged so I was unable to follow the live commentary from the EAWRC].

Above, hopefully you have seen a reasonably balanced report on Blue Crews. In contrast to the results listed above, below you will find some egregious reporting from sports information offices that really goes beyond the pale. None of these folks always get their facts straight and their understanding of rowing often seems to be challenged. This week the prize goes out to Navy Sports for being “homers” and trying to make “a silk purse out of a sow’s ear”. Just a couple of the winning lines:
Navy [women] Posts Four First-Place Finals Times at Eastern Sprints Championship. The Mids placed first in their final of the first varsity eight, second varsity eight, varsity four ‘A’ and third varsity eight. [fact check — Navy finished 13th, 13th, 7th and 13th, respectively, finishing FIRST in 3rd level, 3rd level, petite and 3rd level finals]

The Midshipmen finished sixth in the grand final of the varsity four “B” competition. [fact check — this was actually Navy’s best finish in the regatta and only grand final]

Navy also finished second in the fourth varsity eight race with a 7:59.192 clocking. [fact check — there were only TWO boats in this final-only event and Navy finished some 43 seconds or more than 10 lengths back of the Cornell 4V]

“In general, we are happy with the results of our afternoon races,” stated Navy head coach Mike Hughes. [one can only hope that Coach Hughes was mis-quoted or mis-interpreted. Otherwise his expectations for Navy are set much to low.]

In prior weeks, the same sports information guy at USNA has confused and mis-described competition for the Rusty Callow Cup and Adams Cup. First saying that Harvard and Navy HWs competed for the Callow Cup, while Navy and Penn LWs compete is for the Adams Cup. Additionally, after we notified him of this error, he then implied that the Adams Cup is competed for annually between Harvard and Navy with Penn as an “invited guest”. [fact check – The annual Adams Cup trophy honors Charles Francis Adams, a Harvard graduate and Secretary of the Navy, and was placed into competition by these three institutions in 1933. In 74 regattas since, Penn has won the cup 14 times, most recently in 1999. Harvard has won the most with 47 Adams Cup victories, which includes each race since the Quakers’ victory 12 years ago. Navy has 13 wins, the last coming in 1996.

The Callow Cup was established in 1955, in honor of Russell “Rusty” Callow, who coached at both Penn and the U.S. Naval Academy. Callow retired following the 1959 season after being associated with rowing for more than 50 years. At Navy, he put together the longest string of victories in history. Until Navy’s loss to Penn in the Adams Cup regatta in 1955, the Midshipmen had won 31 straight races, including the finals of the 1952 Olympic Games.

Navy and Penn have competed for the cup every year since its inception with the Midshipmen claiming 30 cups to Penn’s 26. Navy has won the cup ten straight times with Penn’s last victory coming in 2000. The Callow and Adams Cups are two of the longest standing competitions in rowing, with the Callow Cup named in honor of the legendary Washington, Penn and Navy Coach… you would think that Navy Sports Info could get this stuff right!]

[And somewhat less egregious and still a bit “puffy” for the HW squad] – Mids Record Four Top-10 Finishes at Eastern Sprints Championship [fact check — 1V finished 10th, 2V finished 12th, 3V finished last in heat and did not qualify for final, 1F finished 10th, 2F finished 2nd]

The Midshipmen also landed in third place during the grand final of the fourth varsity event. [fact check — there were only 3 entries in this event]

There are also the usual commentary about “finishing fourth in the petite” which really is 10th and some comment as to an afternoon time for a crew being some 7 seconds faster than a morning heat. Conditions varied throughout the day, but with the tail wind increasing markedly in the afternoon, comparing times from morning to afternoon and race to race can be problematic.

Yale and other sports info articles are also guilty of missing facts, but these Navy guys are over the top. I have consistently described my efforts here as “cut, paste and comment”. Hopefully no one is offended by these comments. Navy rowing is a storied program in collegiate sport and deserves better and more realistic reporting — enough of the hyperbole.

_____________________________

So Bravo Zulu to those Navy oars and coxswains who have finished their 2010 season — Well Rowed. For the rest, on to H-Y, IRA and NCAA with improved Flow, better speed and medals all around.

GO BLUE … Be One With The Boat!

Cheers!

Best Regards,

Coach and TB406

P Please consider the environment before printing this e-mail.

The contents of this e-mail and any files transmitted with it are confidential and intended to be read solely by the individual to whom it is addressed, and are further subject to copyright protection. This e-mail communication may contain material that is privileged, confidential, or protected from disclosure under applicable law. If you are not the intended recipient or the authorized agent of the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that you are strictly prohibited from viewing, printing, storing, disseminating, distributing, copying or taking any action in reliance on the contents of this communication. Please be advised that if you are not the intended recipient of this communication, the viewing, dissemination or distribution of information contained in this communication may constitute a violation of state or federal law. If you have received this e-mail communication in error, please notify the sender immediately and delete the message from your system. Thank you.

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From Yale Sports:

Lightweights Third at Sprints

Yale’s first varsity eight.
WORCESTER, Mass. – The Yale lightweight varsity didn’t find the yellow brick road, but they did find their way to the medal dock after the 1V and 2V races today on windy Lake Quinsigamond. The Y150 varsity, seeded 5th, chased top-ranked Harvard in both the heat and the final. The final was a classic Sprints race, with Princeton setting the hot pace early, with Harvard and Yale giving chase, separating themselves from the pack ahead of Navy, Dartmouth, and Penn.

The Yale 2V had a solid row, not enough to beat Princeton in this case, but enough to clear the rest of the field, hold onto the number two rank, and close the gap with the Tigers.

The Yale 1F finished just out of the medals in fourth, just .311 seconds out of bronze. Again, a late charge wasn’t enough on a windy day which saw Cornell come within one second of the course record.

The Yale 3V finished fourth, and the 2V third in their respective races, and the 4V 4+ won it’s “race within a race” with MIT’s LWT 4+ entry.

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From Yale 150 website:

The Wizard of Bronze; and silver too

(May 16) The Yale lightweight varsity didn’t find the yellow brick road, but they did find their way to the medal dock after the 1V and 2V races today on windy Lake Quinsigamond. The Y150 varsity, seeded 5th, chased top-ranked Harvard in both the heat and the final. The final was a classic Sprints race, with Princeton setting the hot pace early, with Harvard and Yale giving chase, separating themselves from the pack behind of Navy, Dartmouth, and Penn.

The Yale 2V had a solid row, not enough to beat Princeton in this case, but enough to clear the rest of the field, hold onto the number two rank, and close the gap with the Tigers.

The Yale 3V finished fourth, and the 2V third in their respective races, and the 4V 4+ won it’s “race within a race” with MIT’s LWT 4+ entry.

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From Navy Sports:

Navy Lands in Top Five in All Races at Eastern Sprints Championship

The Midshipmen finished fifth in the first varsity race, first in the second freshmen event

Navy men’s lightweight crew

May 16, 2010

WORCESTER, Mass. – The Navy men’s lightweight crew team delivered top-five finishes in all-five finals it competed in at the Eastern Sprints Championship on Sunday on Lake Quinsigamond.
In the first varsity grand final, Navy finished in fifth place with a time of 5:46.209, which was 5.06 seconds behind champion Princeton. The Mids qualified for the grand final by virtue of their second-place time of 5:48.411 in the morning heat.

Navy’s second varsity boat placed fifth in the grand final with a 5:53.174 clocking, which was 5.906 seconds away from Princeton’s first-place time. The Mids earned a spot in the grand final with their time of 6:00.612 during the heats in the morning.

The first freshmen boat from Navy also landed in fifth place during the grand final with a 5:56.382 performance, which was 5.047 seconds faster than its qualifying time during the morning heats.

Navy’s second freshmen boat won its grand final with a time of 6:05.197, which was an impressive 7.269 seconds faster than second-place Harvard. The Midshipmen also finished third in the grand final of the third varsity competition with a 5:54.494 clocking, which was 4.105 second off of Cornell’s winning time.

The Midshipmen will close out the season on June 5 when they head to the IRA National Championship in Camden, N.J.

Eastern Sprints Heats
First Varsity – Princeton 5:46.943, Navy 5:48.411, Dartmouth 5:48.743, Cornell 5:53.657, MIT 5:59.885, St. Joseph’s 6:04.047
Second Varsity – Princeton 5:54.675, Cornell 5:56.088, Navy 6:00.612, Dartmouth 6:01.854, Georgetown 6:08.387
First Freshmen – Cornell 5:54.271, Navy 6:01.429, Dartmouth 6:02.964, St. Joseph’s 6:07.492, Columbia 6:07.492, MIT 6:08.204
Eastern Sprints Finals
First Varsity (grand final) – Princeton 5:41.149, Harvard 5:43.417, Yale 5:43.730, Dartmouth 5:46.021, Navy 5:46.209, Penn 5:48.334
Second Varsity (grand final) – Princeton 5:47.268, Yale 5:49.038, Cornell 5:51.278, Harvard 5:53.025, Navy 5:53.174, Penn 6:01.508
Third Varsity (grand final) – Cornell 5:50.389, Harvard 5:51.121, Navy 5:54.494, Yale 5:54.895, Princeton 6:00.424, Penn 6:02.624, Georgetown 6:08.456
First Freshmen (grand final) – Cornell 5:48.454, Harvard 5:48.782, Princeton 5:53.873, Yale 5:54.184, Navy 5:56.382, Dartmouth 6:07.215
Second Freshmen (grand final) – Navy 6:05.197, Harvard 6:12.466, Yale 6:16.103, Dartmouth 6:16.522, Georgetown 6:30.910, Cornell 6:38.636

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From Yale Sports:

Bulldogs Capture Second Straight Sprints, Ivy League Title; Win Charles Willing Team Trophy

The Bulldogs raise the Ivy League trophy. (Tim Bennett photo)
Varsity Eight Edges Princeton By Less Than Second

CHERRY HILL, N.J. – The path may have been a little more difficult than in recent years, but the end result was just as sweet for the Yale women’s crew. Yale’s varsity eight captured the Eastern Sprints and Ivy League titles for the fourth time in the last six years, winning a thrilling grand final by less than a second over second-place Princeton. The Bulldogs came in at 6:20.155, just ahead of the Tigers, who finished in 6:20.932.

The victory capped another outstanding day on the Cooper River for Yale, which won the Charles Willing Team Trophy for overall supremacy for the second straight year and the third time in the last four years. All five Yale boats that competed at Sprints earned a medal.

“The team worked very, very hard to accomplish what we accomplished today,” said Yale head coach Will Porter. “To win the overall points trophy is amazing because of the adversity we’ve had to deal with this year. This has certainly been one of the most challenging years we’ve had,”

The Bulldogs, who won the Willing Trophy for the fifth time in school history, had to overcome difficult weather conditions early in the season that nearly flooded Gilder Boathouse, a stomach virus that went through the team prior to the races at Cornell and a number of injuries in the lower boats.

“I’m extremely proud of all our boats,” said captain Taylor Ritzel.

“Princeton is always so dynamic out of the gate that we knew we had to be with them to have a chance,” Porter said.

Yale had the lead for most of the race but never by more than a few seats.

“We had a lot of fun and raced with freedom. That’s what [coach Porter] always says,” said coxswain Mia Kanaka. “We stayed focused on our strokes and really trusted each other.”

Joining Kanaka and Ritzel in the boat for the Bulldogs were Dar Dick son, Stephanie Manner, Catherine Hart, Caroline Nash, Marden Creak, Alice Henley and Tessa Errand.

Brown finished third, nearly 11 seconds behind Yale. Dartmouth was fourth followed by Penn and Cornell.

In the second varsity eight grand final, the Bulldogs finished third with a time of 6:44.518. Princeton won in 6:35.998, followed by Brown at 6:40.798.

In the boat for Yale was Catherine McDermott, Mary Jo Tooth man, Kathryn D’ Andrea, Natalie King, Carmine Abeyant, Kathleen Pokeweed, All ix Wilde, Eliza Hastings and coxswain Sarah Brownlee.

Yale’s varsity four of Amanda Grady, Alexandra Fields, Elizabeth McDermott, Mary Pat Witted and coxswain Erica Se gall finished second to Brown. The Bears came in at 7:10.852, nearly eight seconds faster than the Bulldogs.

In the third varsity eight, Yale placed second with a time of 6:50.321. Brown won in 6:45.331.

In the boat for Yale was Brittany Bowman, Ryan McCarthy, Melissa Wei gel, Lauren Ross, Emily Tourney, Lily Blair, Mary Arose-Ant le, Katherine Dyke and coxswain Margaret Ayers.

Yale’s second varsity four of Laura Obedience, Julia Jellified, Nikkei Gregg, Georgia Sparrow and coxswain Assuming Parse also finished second with a time of 7:34.162. Brown won in 7:30.527.

“There are a lot of people who contribute to our success,” Porter said. “My assistant coaches Kate Maloney and Jamie Snider do a great job. I believe we have the best trainer in the country in Dave Annapolis, and our strength coach Joe Maher has been terrific.”

The Bulldogs will next compete at the NCAA Championships on May 28-30. The 16-team field will be announced on Tuesday at 5 p.m.
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From Navy Sports:

Navy Posts Four First-Place Finals Times at Eastern Sprints Championship

The Mids placed first in their final of the first varsity eight, second varsity eight, varsity four ‘A’ and third varsity eight

Navy women’s crew

May 16, 2010

CHERRY HILL, N.J. – The Navy women’s crew team produced four first-place times in its respective finals to highlight its performance at the Eastern Sprints Championship on Sunday on the Cooper River.
“In general, we are happy with the results of our afternoon races,” stated Navy head coach Mike Hughes. “The morning heats were tough. Some of the best teams in the country were paired in our heats. There were no second chances, no Repechage races. When you’re in the third level final, winning is what you need to do. The varsity four “A” crew won its petite final and beat some very highly ranked teams in the region in the process.”

In the third level final of the first varsity eight event, Navy produced the top time with a 6:59.103 clocking, which was 3.487 seconds faster than second-place Boston College. The Midshipmen placed fifth during the morning heat with a time of 7:04.112.

Navy’s second varsity eight boat also won its third-level final to place 13th overall with a time of 7:04.711, which was an impressive 5.314 seconds better than second-place Syracuse. The Mids landed in fifth place during the morning heats with a 7:12.463 showing.

The varsity four “A” boat for the Midshipmen delivered a first-place time in the petite final to finish seventh overall with a 7:35.969 performance, which was 4.734 seconds quicker than second-place Northeastern. The Mids placed third during the morning heats with a 7:42.351 effort to earn a spot in the petite final.

Rounding out the finals winners for Navy on Sunday its third varsity eight crew that finished first in the third level final with a time of 7:43.453, a mark that was 4.119 seconds ahead of second-place Rutgers.

The Midshipmen finished sixth in the grand final of the varsity four “B” competition with a time of 7:55.211, which was 12.179 seconds faster than their qualifying showing in the morning heats. Navy also finished second in the fourth varsity eight race with a 7:59.192 clocking.

Eastern Sprints Heats
First Varsity Eight – Princeton 6:38.229, Cornell 6:42.440, Northeastern 6:43.401, Boston Univ. 6:57.130, Navy 7:04.112, George Washington 7:21.483
Second Varsity Eight – Princeton 6:46.941, Radcliffe 6:54.962, Northeastern 6:57.830, Penn 7:00.385, Navy 7:12.463, Boston College 7:19.061
Third Varsity Eight – Brown 7:02.663, Northeastern 7:08.154, Penn 7:15.857, Boston Univ. 7:40.022, Navy 7:52.331
Varsity Four `A’ – Princeton 7:33.262, Radcliffe 7:39.179, Navy 7:42.351, Dartmouth 7:52.497, Syracuse 8:12.349
Varsity Four `B’ – Brown 7:50.904, Boston Univ. 7:55.281, Navy 8:07.390, Bucknell 8:16.329, Syracuse 8:34.330
Eastern Sprints Finals
First Varsity Eight (third level final) – Navy 6:59.103, Boston College 7:02.590, MIT 7:04.736, Georgetown 7:07.419, George Washington 7:10.777
Second Varsity Eight (third level final) – Navy 7:04.711, Syracuse 7:10.025, Georgetown 7:10.243, Rutgers 7:14.164, Boston College 7:21.517, MIT 7:24.659
Third Varsity Eight (third level final) – Navy 7:43.453, Rutgers 7:47.572
Fourth Varsity Eight (grand final) – Cornell 7:16.390, Navy 7:59.192
Varsity Four `A’ (petite final) – Navy 7:35.969, Northeastern 7:40.703, Bucknell 7:43.230, Penn 7:44.199, Dartmouth 7:47.339, Columbia 8:11.287
Varsity Four `B’ (grand final) – Brown 7:30.527, Yale 7:34.162, Cornell 7:34.424, Boston Univ. 7:39.688, Penn 7:54.688, Navy 7:55.211

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From Yale Sports:

May 16, 2010

Yale Finishes 12th at Sprints

Worcester, Mass.- Yale’s heavyweight crews concluded competition this afternoon on Worcester’s Lake Quinsigamond. Five Yale crews competed in preliminary heats and finals. The varsity eight finished eleventh, the second varsity seventh, the third varsity fifth, the freshmen twelfth and the 4V/2F four third.

In the prelims, the Yale varsity of sophomore Benjamin Bowles (stroke), senior Henry Cole (seven), junior Marcos Carzolio (six), junior Derek Johnson (five), sophomore Thomas Dethlefs (four), junior Matthew Ramlow (three), senior Lucas Spielfogel (two), junior Alex Mastroyannis (bow) and senior Rebecca Burgoyne-Allen (cox) were just barely edged out of a spot in the grand final by Columbia and Wisconsin. The Bulldogs were leading until the very end, where the battle for second place between the Lions and the Badgers ended up overtaking Yale’s lead.

Varsity heat results:

1. Columbia 5:42.373
2. Wisconsin 5:42.442
3. Yale 5:42.593
4. BU 5:49.137
5. Georgetown 5:54.550
6. Holy Cross 6:02.003

By finishing third, the Yale eight was sent to the petite final of the event where they finished fifth to Cornell, Syracuse, Northeastern and Navy. Behind them came BU. This puts the eight in twelfth overall.

The second varsity was also sent to the petite final after finishing fourth to Brown, Northeastern and Syracuse in the preliminary heat. They ended up winning the petite final for a seventh-place finish overall.

Second varsity petite final:

1. Yale 5:44.315
2. Syracuse 5:44.406
3. BU 5:47.748
4. Dartmouth 5:51.141
5. Columbia 5:51.500
6. Navy 5:55.621

The third varsity raced in grand final of their event after finishing second to Wisconsin in their preliminary heat. They then came in fifth in the grand final:

1. Wisconsin 5:41.300
2. Brown 5:43.349
3. Harvard 5:44.130
4. Cornell 5:48.973
5. Yale 5:51.614
6. Princeton 5:53.874

The freshman eight finished twelfth overall, after finishing fourth in their heat to BU, Georgetown and Navy. They then finished sixth in the petite final:

1. Wisconsin 5:48.900
2. Brown 5:49.470
3. Syracuse 5:51.007
4. Navy 5:52.360
5. Penn 5:55.008
6. Yale 5:55.771

A four of fourth varsity and second freshman rowers rowed in the final of the fours event. They finished third to Syracuse and Northeastern, and ahead of Princeton, Yale lightweights and MIT.
Up next for the Bulldogs is the 145th Yale-Harvard Regatta on May 29.

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From Navy Sports:

Mids Record Four Top-10 Finishes at Eastern Sprints Championship

Navy finished 10th overall in the first varsity event on Sunday

Navy men’s heavyweight crew

May 16, 2010

WORCESTER, Mass. – The Navy men’s heavyweight crew team delivered a total of four top-10 overall finishes at the Eastern Sprints Championship on Sunday at Lake Quinsigamond.
In the varsity eight competition, the Midshipmen placed fourth in the petite final, 10th overall, with a time of 5:41.425. Navy was just 3.386 second behind Cornell’s first-place time in the petite final. The Mids advanced to the petite final by virtue of its fourth-place showing of 5:47.286 in the morning heats.

The Midshipmen also produced a similar fourth-place result, 10th overall, in the petite final of the first freshmen race with a 5:52.360 clocking – which was only 3.46 seconds behind first-place Wisconsin. Navy qualified for the petite final with its third-place time of 5:50.738 in the morning heats.

Navy placed second in the grand final of the second freshmen race with a 5:54.555 performance, just 1.075 seconds behind first-place Cornell. The Midshipmen also landed in third place during the grand final of the fourth varsity event with a time of 6:12.95.

The Mids finished 12th overall and sixth in the second varsity petite final with a 5:55.621 showing, which was 7.561 seconds faster than their showing in the morning heats. Navy also finished fifth in its morning heat of the third varsity competition with a 6:09.058 effort.

The Midshipmen will close out the season on June 3-5, when they head to the IRA National Championship in Camden, N.J.

Eastern Sprints Heats
First Varsity – Harvard 5:39.520, Princeton 5:41.203, Cornell 5:41.997, Navy 5:47.286, Penn 5:53.999, MIT 6:21.519
Second Varsity – Wisconsin 5:49.169, Princeton 5:52.961, Columbia 5:54.642, Navy 6:03.182, Georgetown 6:11.503, Rutgers 6:13.332
Third Varsity – Harvard 5:52.563, Brown 5:54.841, Cornell 5:56.732, Penn 6:05.702, Navy 6:09.058
First Freshmen – Boston Univ. 5:47.900, Georgetown 5:48.339, Navy 5:50.738, Yale 5:58.316, Holy Cross 5:59.436, Rutgers 6:08.727
Eastern Sprints Finals
First Varsity (petite final) – Cornell 5:38.039, Syracuse 5:38.988, Northeastern 5:41.015, Navy 5:41.425, Yale 5:43.805, Boston Univ. 5:44.670
Second Varsity (petite final) – Yale 5:44.315, Syracuse 5:44.406, Boston Univ. 5:47.748, Dartmouth 5:51.141, Columbia 5:51.500, Navy 5:55.621
Fourth Varsity (grand final) – Harvard 6:04.489, Brown 6:09.647, Navy 6:12.195
First Freshmen (petite final) – Wisconsin 5:48.900, Brown 5:49.470, Syracuse 5:51.007, Navy 5:52.360, Penn 5:55.008, Yale 5:55.771
Second Freshmen (grand final) – Cornell 5:53.480, Navy 5:54.555, Wisconsin 6:08.249, George Washington 6:16.226

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From www.row2k.com

Trading Paint: Tigers & Crimson take Titles

The Harvard Heavyweights and Princeton Lights were on top of the pile at Sprints

A couple more upsets in the marquee events and some incredibly fast, tight racing made the afternoon finals at the Men’s Eastern Sprints well worth the trip this Sunday. And although seeing the Princeton Lights and the Harvard Heavies back at the center of the podium this season might have seemed like business as usual, it’s a good bet that neither the coaches nor the crews themselves would have called these wins sure things at any point in recent weeks.
The days’ tailwind (for the record, a sprightly north-northwest cross tail that was between 10-20 mph for the afternoon) definitely contributed to some fast times and a little chop in the afternoon.

By winning the V8 and the Frosh eight, Harvard also sealed up the Rowe Cup for heavyweight team performance, also for the first time since 2007.

“We basically spent 8 days working on getting an extra 3 seats after that race [on May 1st],” said first-year Princeton lightweight head coach Marty Crotty. “I don’t know if it’s more demoralizing being down 4 seats or 8 seats, but we knew that Harvard was very good and that we’d have to do the work in the middle 1000 of the race. The guys did a great job hitting their margins at every point of the race.”

With each Princeton and Harvard having beaten the other once, the rubber match will come at the IRAs for the National title. Crotty wasn’t looking that far ahead. “Who knows? In three weeks, everything might be different!”

With wins in the Lightweight JV and a well-earned bronze in the Lightweight Frosh eight, Princeton also reclaimed the Jope Cup for lightweight points, just ahead of Harvard.

The JV events in fact saw the few races where the top seeds fared well today, with the Brown and the Princeton lightweights successfully defending their #1 rankings going in. The Brown heavies saw off Cornell and Wisconsin, while Princeton beat Yale and Cornell for top honors on the lightweight side.

The Freshman racing provided some great fireworks to open the afternoon racing as the Cornell Frosh Lights ended Harvard’s previously undefeated season with a huge sprint for the win. “We used our early-season loss to Harvard as motivation for today,” said Sean Healey, Cornell’s freshman lightweight coach. “They used that to refocus on the job of climbing up the hill to get ahead of Harvard, and they did an awesome job of doing that work.”

Judging from the photographic evidence of the racing, this one wasn’t a done deal at any point, even with 10 strokes to go.

As the events progressed throughout the afternoon, in addition to the increase in the speed of the field you could see an increase in cox-tossing proficiency; the faster the boat, the better the cox toss (more to come in our galleries later!)

It’s always surprising how quickly the beach and viewing area clears out after the last race has cleared the course; with crews and coaches packing up shirts, shells and trailers, the only action left is at the tents, and of course, at Mr. Grinold’s tailgate. Although this reporter had to decline his invitation to join this illustrious round, a quick glance at the participants confirmed that the living history of five or six decades of racing at the EARC Sprints was in very, very good hands.

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From www.row2k.com:

Bulldogs and Badgers Take Home Booty

the Badger and Bulldog varsity eights

The 2010 EARWC Sprints Championship in Camden Sunday saw many familiar faces on the medal stands at the end of the racing, with the Yale Bulldogs and Wisconsin Badgers both repeating in the varsity eight events.

Wisconsin led early in the race, but other crews still had contact with the Badgers. At about 1000 meters, Princeton was only about 4 seats back. “I was hoping they (Wisco) had another gear….we have been working on putting together a whole race going all the way down the race course, and I was hoping they would be able to maintain a similar speed to what they did the first half of the race course,” says Coach Erik Miller. Just after the 1000, Wisconsin did find another gear, and pulled away from the field even more, ultimately winning the race by 5 seconds over Princeton, with Radcliffe 3 seconds behind the Tigers.

(Miller monitored their race during his own contest on the south shore of Cooper, stopping at intervals to gather information to take back to the launch next week. Worth noting that this guy on his streamlined red racing bike set a formidable pace in the coaching pack as well!)

“We are going to continue to work to put together the best combination of people going into the IRAs,” says Miller, noting that he has been testing different athletes, including a freshman in 6-seat for this race. “We’ve got a lot of people who are really close (to a seat in the Varsity boat) so we’ll have to see what happens over the next few weeks.”

Miller coaches the 1V and the 2V for the Badgers, both crews won their event at this regatta. Dusty Mattison coaches the Novice crew and the four; Wisco won the novice eight, while Princeton, Radcliffe and Bucknell took the medals in the four. Together the Wisconsin team won the Konrad Ulbrich Award for the Lightweight team with the best performance; this is a deep team of talented women.

“What we’ve doing is getting the fastest combination of rowers,” Miller summarizes, “We want to win here (Sprints) and we want to win at the IRAs, in the past we haven’t made switches in between the Sprints and the IRAs, but this time I suspect we will.”

The lightweight racing was earlier on the dance card, throughout the day there was a little concern about the wind and fairness of lanes. While the weather was overall very enjoyable, the wind was capricious, and folks in the launches spent the morning trying to figure out which way it was headed, and if the North shore provided any shelter in the lower number lanes during the event. The variable North wind sometimes seemed to play out as a cross-tail, sometimes a cross-head; the conclusion was that the wind was too variable in direction to create any clear advantage or disadvantage.

In the morning, the open weight side of the racing was playing out almost exactly as predicted and seeded, with Yale, Princeton and Brown all winning their heats in the 1V and 2V Eights races without having to fight too hard for the placement. They could go into the long lunch break (2.5 hours…there was some event contraction for the 2010 Sprints when the league eliminated novice events) with confidence and without lactate–always good way to spend the time between heats and finals.

The finals in both the 2V and the Varsity Sunday were all-Ivy League, with Brown, Princeton, Yale, Columbia, Cornell, and Radcliffe filling lanes for the 2V; Brown, Princeton, Yale, Dartmouth, Cornell and Penn populating the Varsity Grand Final.

The Second Varsity Eight Grand Final began with Brown having the most effective start, but only 20 strokes in, Princeton pulled ahead. (This strong Princeton start, as it turns out, is what rivals Yale were concerned about in the Varsity race–more on this later). At 500 meters, Princeton was a hair ahead with Yale and Radcliffe side-by-side. Brown was at a higher rate, but Princeton remained composed and pulled ahead by another 8 seats, Yale within a deck of Brown. The race remained in that order going through the body of piece, with Princeton’s walk-on populated crew establishing themselves, and creating some concern for following years for their competitors. Four-seat Gabby Cole is a Frosh walk-on who grabbed coaches attention during the winter and was also a quick study on technique in the spring. Princeton’s 2V was not in any way a discernible novice boat.

On the water, the match-up was so close that it was hard to visualize from trailing officials boats without the proper angle. Yale figured out the start in this match, and that may have been what gave them the “W.” There were within a deck of Princeton in the first 30 strokes, and took the lead coming into the second 500; this lead was only relinquished (if at all) by a couple feet of deck throughout the race. At only 700 gone, it was Yale ahead by 2 seats over Princeton, with an unexpected span of open water over Brown. The separation from the field so early was what changed the tone of the race. It became a 2-boat race (Brown did arrive at the finish line in third, but it was just shy of 11 seconds behind the pair at the front, followed by Dartmouth in fourth a couple seconds back, Penn, and Cornell).

During the race, the boats appeared to approximate in their lanes, drawing their challengers into an intimate altercation. Princeton remained composed, but each stroke seemed to strengthen the Bulldogs–they had all the technique of the Tiger boat, but with perhaps a hair more horsepower within. As they came in site at the last 300 meters the shores were packed with every body present in Cooper River park squeezing for a view of the finish, Bulldogs finished eight tenths of a second ahead of the Tigers.

Yale has won the Sprints under Porter’s leadership in 2005, 2007, 2009 and now 2010. Once Porter got some traction in the Yale program, he and his athletes have become one of the most intimidating crews in the east and nationwide. At these Sprints, Yale also garnered the Charles Willing, Jr. trophy for the team with the best performance in the Varsity Eights, as well as the Sally Shoemaker Trophy for the Ivy team with the best finish in the Varsity Eights, as well as the Overall High Points Trophy.

A lot of the speed has been with Taylor Ritzel, current stroke and senior, in the boat. With athleticism and a carefree attitude hiding a harden competitor, Ritzel is a senior leader that will be missed in the program next year. She was in the boat as a freshman when Yale won in 2007, then as stroke in 2009 and 2010.

Princeton’s proximity during the brawl diverted the stroke’s attention only a few beats. “When I play those games of looking outside the boat (coxswain had to remind Taylor a couple times “eyes in!”), it can be a distraction. This race I just tried to focus on what we were trying to do.”

“I knew if we were hanging with Princeton we were going fast,” says Ritzel.

“I think the key was just to stay internal and do what we do,” says coxswain Mia Kanaka after the Final, “We had to trust ourselves and trust each other,” she says. Many from this crew has been together for four years.

The top squads in the regatta will be strong candidates for an NCAA bid; look for the announcement of the NCAA crews Tuesday, May 18 at 5:00 pm.

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From www.row2k.com:

Pac-10’s: Husky Men Sweep, Cal Women Squeak Out Win

Husky Varsity 8+ celebrating the win

Cal women hoist the trophy

“The varsity knew the team championship would come down to them, so it was great to see them respond in the final,” said Cal coach Dave O’Neill. “They knew if Jill said it was time to go in the last 500, it was coming from a special place.”

Some back story on senior coxswain Jill Costello; following NCAA’s last year she was diagnosed with Stage IV lung cancer and has been battling through extensive chemotherapy in the last 11 months. This spring she has predominately coxed in the 2V, with the exception of the Cal/Stanford dual when she went on a religious pilgrimage to Lourdes, France, seeking a miracle cure for her cancer. Jill just graduated last week and this weekend was her first race coxing the 1V.

The rest of the men’s racing was dominated by Washington, who won the JV eight and Varsity 4 by a length each, and the Husky Freshmen eight won by a length of open water; all over second place Cal. That leaves each Washington boat undefeated for the spring heading to the IRA.

The women’s 2V race provided the only “upset” of the day, with Stanford powering to a win with Washington in second and Cal in third. The Cardinal was seeded third in the event, and were the only non number 1 seed to win. In the women’s four, Washington pulled away from the field in the final 750 meters to beat Cal by seven seconds. The Huskies also won the women’s novice eight over a surprise silver medalist Stanford. Stanford reversed a couple big defeats to Cal from earlier in the spring to take second place by nearly a length.

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