Princeton University Athletics
Undefeated Women's Lightweights Look To Regain Eastern Championship
May 14, 2008 | Women's Rowing - Lightweight
The top-ranked Princeton women's lightweights will be looking for nothing more than consistency when the squad heads to Cooper River in Camden, N.J., this weekend. The Tigers have done nothing but win this season, and they know one more win will earn them an EAWRC championship.
Head coach Paul Rassam has been building for this weekend since taking over the program for Heather Smith prior to the 2005 season. Once the dominant program in women's lightweight rowing, the depth in the sport has grown by leaps and bounds in recent years. Radcliffe and Wisconsin became national powers, and Georgetown, Stanford and Central Florida are among the rising programs now.
But Rassam never let Princeton believe that it couldn't get back to the top of the sport. After a disappointing 2006 postseason, Princeton pushed back last year. The Tigers finished second to Wisconsin in the 2007 Eastern Sprints; three weeks later, they knocked off the Badgers in the IRA grand final, only to lose to a Bucknell squad that took rowers from its open program to form a lightweight eight.
Even without gold in either race, a message was sent. Princeton was back. That message has been echoed this season, as the Tigers went a perfect 8-0 in the regular season, including wins over No. 2 Stanford, No. 3 Central Florida, No. 4 Wisconsin, No. 5 Radcliffe, No. 6 Georgetown and No. 8 MIT. While Princeton will have to wait until IRAs to meet Stanford and Central Florida again, the Tigers will see those other four rivals in the 2008 EAWRC grand final at 3:15 on Sunday.
While Princeton will enter the weekend as the favorite, the team knows that it can't rest on past performances. Radcliffe finished only three seconds behind Princeton in the regular season, while Wisconsin was only 5.1 seconds off the Princeton pace two weeks ago. With four schools gearing for a championship upset, the Tigers will need their best 2000 meters of the season to win their first Eastern title since 2003.
Princeton will also compete in the second varsity grand final (1:25 p.m.) and the varsity four grand final (1:55), with Georgetown, Radcliffe and Wisconsin being the opposition in both races. The Princeton second varsity will be looking to avenge a close loss to Wisconsin in the regular season finale May 3.
Head coach Paul Rassam has been building for this weekend since taking over the program for Heather Smith prior to the 2005 season. Once the dominant program in women's lightweight rowing, the depth in the sport has grown by leaps and bounds in recent years. Radcliffe and Wisconsin became national powers, and Georgetown, Stanford and Central Florida are among the rising programs now.
But Rassam never let Princeton believe that it couldn't get back to the top of the sport. After a disappointing 2006 postseason, Princeton pushed back last year. The Tigers finished second to Wisconsin in the 2007 Eastern Sprints; three weeks later, they knocked off the Badgers in the IRA grand final, only to lose to a Bucknell squad that took rowers from its open program to form a lightweight eight.
Even without gold in either race, a message was sent. Princeton was back. That message has been echoed this season, as the Tigers went a perfect 8-0 in the regular season, including wins over No. 2 Stanford, No. 3 Central Florida, No. 4 Wisconsin, No. 5 Radcliffe, No. 6 Georgetown and No. 8 MIT. While Princeton will have to wait until IRAs to meet Stanford and Central Florida again, the Tigers will see those other four rivals in the 2008 EAWRC grand final at 3:15 on Sunday.
While Princeton will enter the weekend as the favorite, the team knows that it can't rest on past performances. Radcliffe finished only three seconds behind Princeton in the regular season, while Wisconsin was only 5.1 seconds off the Princeton pace two weeks ago. With four schools gearing for a championship upset, the Tigers will need their best 2000 meters of the season to win their first Eastern title since 2003.
Princeton will also compete in the second varsity grand final (1:25 p.m.) and the varsity four grand final (1:55), with Georgetown, Radcliffe and Wisconsin being the opposition in both races. The Princeton second varsity will be looking to avenge a close loss to Wisconsin in the regular season finale May 3.
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