Princeton University Athletics
Tiger Crews Find Success During 2009 Princeton Chase
October 26, 2009 | Heavyweight Rowing, Women's Rowing - Open, Women's Rowing - Lightweight, Men's Rowing - Lightweight
All four Princeton rowing programs experienced success during the annual Princeton Chase, held Oct. 25 at Lake Carnegie.
On the women's side, the Princeton open placed third overall in 15:02.82, which trailed only Yale and Virginia but topped several other 'A' boats, including Brown, Penn and Syracuse. The Princeton 'B' claimed 11th overall in 15:51.78, while the 'C' crew took 31st in 16:36.68.
The lightweight women had a very strong showing — its best in eight years — by taking 12th overall in the open competition with a time of 15:51.84. That time was the best among all lightweight crews, including annual rivals Georgetown and Radcliffe, and topped several open 'A' boats, including Boston University, Indiana and Cornell. The Princeton lightweight 'B' placed 49th overall in 17:26.91.
"I think we learned a lot about our young team over the course of this past week," said head coach Paul Rassam, who was thrilled with the 28-second against the Hoyas and the 16-second turnaround against Radcliffe. "We knew were capable of much more than we had shown at the Charles, leaving Boston disappointed to have lost to Radcliffe and Georgetown. The way the athletes responded to the challege was everything a coach could hope for. The character they displayed bodes well for our spring season."
Both women's teams also put boats in the fours, and both experienced success there as well. The open 'A' won the event easily in 16:41.99, while the 'B' team placed second in 17:07.13. The top lightweight four also belonged to Princeton, which took fourth overall in 17:21.34. They were among the seven boat in the 4+ competition, and all times can be found on the link above.
Meanwhile, the men also had significant success, beginning with a victory for the heavyweight eight. Under new head coach Greg Hughes, Princeton won in 13:18.69, more than two seconds faster than Yale and nearly five faster than third-place Columbia. Princeton was one of two programs with two teams in the overall Top 10; the 'B' team placed 10th in 13:46.73.
The men's lightweights also earned a victory in 13:19.69, more than four seconds faster than Harvard and nearly eight fuil seconds faster than third-place Navy. The Tiger 'B' crew placed 14th in 14:05.14.