Princeton University
EARC Sprints
Men's Lightweights Place Second To Cornell At Eastern Championships
May 18, 2008 | Men's Rowing - Lightweight
Head coach Greg Hughes knew that being the top seed wouldn't help Princeton during the tense and exciting 2008 EARC championships, held Sunday at Lake Quinsigamond in Worcester, Mass. Although the Tigers would be edged out by two-time defending national champion Cornell in the final, a second-place finish was Princeton's best in Hughes' tenure.
Princeton defeated Cornell during the Platt Cup weekend at Lake Carnegie during the regular season and would top the Big Red in their semifinal heat, but Cornell won the Eastern and Ivy League title by winning the grand final in 6:17.74. Princeton picked up the silver medal by finishing in 6:20.45, while Yale finished third in 6:22.16. Rounding out the top six were fourth-place Navy, fifth-place Dartmouth and sixth-place Columbia, coached by former Hughes assistant Scott Alwin.
Princeton and Cornell will be among the favorites for the IRA national championship, which will be decided June 7 at Cooper River in Camden, N.J. As history has shown, any team can be upset in a semifinal heat and any grand finalist can go on to win gold. Hughes will be looking to guide Princeton to both the EARC and IRA grand final in the same year for the first time when the field makes its way to Camden.
One of Hughes' goals was to send all four of his boats to their respective grand finals, and Princeton accomplished that task. The Princeton second varsity (6:18.33) and the third varsity (6:22.46) both placed fourth in their respective finals, while the freshman eight placed sixth in 6:17.47. Navy won both varsity competitions, while Yale won the freshman race.
Princeton is now off until the IRAs, where the Tigers won the petite final last year.
All times from the 2008 EARC championships can be found here.