Princeton University
Eastern Sprints
Players Mentioned
Heavyweights Win 1st Rowe Cup Since 2005, Take V8 Bronze At Eastern Sprints
May 17, 2015 | Heavyweight Rowing
The top-seeded Bulldogs, who went undefeated during the regular season, won its first Sprints crown since 1983 by grabbing an early lead and never looking back. By the midway point, the Bulldogs were out in front by at least half a length, and they ultimately won gold in 5:35.76.
"That's a good Yale boat, and they proved that today," head coach Greg Hughes said. "We all threw what we had at them, and for them to win by four seats, that's really impressive. I think our guys felt like they had a really solid piece, and also a couple of things they can work on. They weren't down by their race."
That left three boats racing for two spots on the medal podium, as both Harvard and Boston University fell out of it. For much of the race, Princeton was in the fourth spot, trailing both Northeastern and Brown, but the Tigers made their final push in time to create a wild ending.
Northeastern would hold on for the silver medal, but Princeton pushed past Brown in the final strokes to earn the bronze medal. It was a stunning repeat from just two weeks ago, when the Tigers rallied past Brown late to retain the Content Cup. The Tigers took third in 5:37.44, about one tenth of a second ahead of the Bears.
That wouldn't be the only close finish for Princeton during a thrilling Eastern Sprints performance on Lake Quinsigamond in Worcester, Mass. Both the 2V and 3V were pushed hard, but neither would wilt in their golden performances.
The second varsity was the only major boat on any of the four Princeton rowing teams to complete an undefeated season, but it hadn't dealt with anything like it got from Boston University Sunday. The Terriers pushed Princeton in both a blazing heat and in the grand final, but the Tigers were strong enough in both to hold on.
The final saw Princeton grab the lead and then hold off the Terrier charge to win in 5:43.95, which was slightly more than a second faster than Boston University. Northeastern wasn't far off the pace either, but neither boat could end Princeton's unbeaten season.
"The heat was a killer but we got the win which was the plan," junior Ed Northrop said. "It was a gutsy race from the Terriers and it set the tone for the final. We definitely spent some biscuits but if anything the heat let us know what to expect in the final. Harvard went hammer and tongs out at the start so full credit to them. They set the pace and we knew we had to run with the big dogs.
"At the end of the day, we executed a near perfect effort and the crew really went to the well to do it," Northrop added. "In the current crew we have some returners from the last few years so after a couple of years of being bridesmaids the JV's certainly pretty pumped to finally snag some gold."
The third varsity showdown would be even more dramatic. Princeton came in as the second seed behind Cornell, which handed the Tigers their only loss on the Cayuga Inlet earlier this season. Unlike the 2V race, Princeton was the team coming from off the pace this time. While all eyes were on the top two seeds, Brown was the boat that pushed the competition and led much of the way.
Just not all of the way.
Princeton had enough over the final 500 meters to move past the Bears for the second time in three weeks and claim the gold medal.
"That was a truly awesome race," Hughes said. "That was sheer guts racing."
That win set the wheels in motion for bring the Rowe Cup back to Princeton for the first time in a decade.
"As a team, it's something we have been talking about all year," Hughes said. "It was a big goal. You don't see teams that have just one fast boat. You train so much on your own in our sport, and it's a hard, grinding sort of training. Frankly, it can be boring. You need people to push you, to motivate you. That makes all the difference in the sport. That's something that every guy on the team can be proud of."
"I have to say I'm about as excited as a kid at Christmas," Northrop said. "That said, it's a team trophy and full credit to all the team. While the points are limited to the 1V, 2V, and 3V, trophies are won in training and there's real pressure from the 5V up, which makes all the boats that much faster."
Princeton won the petite final in the 4V race, and took fourth in the 5V/2F race.
The Tigers will now turn their attention to the IRA Championships, which will be held at nearby Mercer Lake in West Windsor, N.J. Princeton took fourth last year, its best finish in the V8 national final since 2006, and will look to get back to the medal stand when the national title is decided May 31.
VARSITY EIGHT
1 Yale 5:35.759
2 Northeastern 5:37.089
3 Princeton 5:37.438
4 Brown 5:37.549
5 Harvard 5:42.150
6 Boston Univ. 5:43.636
SECOND VARSITY EIGHT
1 Princeton 5:43.954
2 Boston Univ. 5:45.031
3 Northeastern 5:45.366
4 Brown 5:48.169
5 Yale 5:50.655
6 Harvard 5:52.704
THIRD VARSITY EIGHT
1 Princeton 5:48.608
2 Brown 5:48.885
3 Cornell 5:52.493
4 Yale 5:55.101
5 Boston Univ. 5:57.184
6 Northeastern 6:01.031
FOURTH VARSITY EIGHT (PETITE)
1 Princeton 6:05.002
2 Harvard 6:13.593
3 Holy Cross 6:17.166
4 George Washington 6:19.048
FIFTH VARSITY/SECOND FRESHMAN EIGHT
1 Wisconsin 2F 6:00.735
2 Brown 6:10.785
3 Dartmouth 6:14.023
4 Princeton 6:14.569
5 Navy 6:14.797
6 Harvard 2F 6:19.183
7 Holy Cross 6:27.333