Princeton University Athletics
Princeton University
The Class of 1999 Cup: Harvard & Bucknell
Lightweight Women Regain Class Of 1999 Cup After Close Radcliffe Race
April 24, 2010 | Women's Rowing - Lightweight
Head coach Paul Rassam was pleased to see his still-progressing varsity eight handle a challenging situation superbly Saturday morning. In one of the top rivalries in the sport, the third-ranked Princeton women's lightweight crew rallied past Radcliffe to regain The Class of 1999 Cup.
Princeton won both varsity races in the morning, though it was the headline race that proved to be the most dramatic. While both the fifth-ranked Bucknell Bison and a Radcliffe 2V were also on the course, it was the third-ranked Tigers and fourth-ranked Crimson that stole the show. Both held leads at one point, but it was Princeton's late surge that assured victory. The Tigers won in 7:14.6, while Radcliffe took second in 7:16.9. Bucknell finished in a distant third in a time of 7:30.9.
"This was a hard fought race with lead changes," Rassam said afterwards. "I was again very pleased with the maturity our V8 demonstrated today. We are headed in the right direction. There is much that we can improve upon prior to the championship races and we look forward to getting back at it."
That championship race will not only be the next time Princeton sees Radcliffe, but it will be the next competition of any sort for the Tigers. The lightweight women are off next weekend and are now fully focused on the EAWRC Championships, which will be held May 16 at Cooper River in Cherry Hill, N.J.
The varsity four was also impressive Saturday, winning in a time of 8:35.6, more than 7.5 seconds faster than Bucknell and nearly 17 seconds faster than Radcliffe.
"Our 2V4 made a lot of progress this past week and they were able to put together some really nice pushes in their win," Rassam said. "They never let themselves sit for too long."
Radcliffe picked up a novice eight win in 7:53.9.
COMPLETE RESULTS
First Varsity: Princeton 7:14.6, Radcliffe 7:16.9, Bucknell 7:30.9, Radcliffe 2V 7:40.7
Varsity Four: Princeton 8:35.6, Bucknell 8:43.3, Radcliffe 8:52.5
Novice Eight: Radcliffe 7:53.9, Princeton 8:28.2