Players Mentioned
10th-Ranked Open Women Ready To Build Off Opener, Host Columbia Saturday
March 31, 2016 | Women's Rowing - Open
Senior Brett Simpson and the 10th-ranked Princeton open women learned a few valuable lessons last Saturday when they took on two of the top three boats in the nation.
Now they begin the process of building upon them, so that they can be ready for any potential postseason rematches.
“A race like that really makes you stop and think about where you can continue to find speed — both as a boat and as a program,” said Simpson, a member of the 1V Saturday. “There were moments when boats walked on us, and there were moments when we walked back. From here, we're looking at both of those kinds of moments and trying to capitalize on them.
“We had a really strong start and a strong sprint, which is exciting because it shows that the speed and power are there.”
Brown jumped to the No. 1 spot in the nation following the victory, while Ohio State moved to the No. 3 spot after finishing second in the 1V race. So you can look at the results two different ways: either that Princeton started the season 0-2, or that the Tigers were less than three seconds back of the top-ranked boat, and only .3 of a second behind the third-ranked boat in the country.
Ultimately, though, it's just perspective. There are still so many more races to come, including Saturday morning's home race against Columbia. The regatta starts at 9 with the B/C fours, and will continue through 10 am, when the 1Vs race.
It will also be interesting to see how each of the boats come together after the season opener. Lineups throughout the program were being shuffled right up to the weekend, and now we can start to see some chemistry develop.
“It feels good to finally have a race under our belts,” Simpson said. “It takes away some nerves and adds a level of focus. When we raced on Saturday, we had only been in that lineup for about two days. Things are still changing, but I think that we have a lot to gain as we continue to practice and learn to match as a boat.”
That race starts a tough stretch for the Tigers, who will take on three nationally ranked boats over the following two weeks, including its lone road regatta of the season in Ithaca vs. No. 17 Harvard and Cornell.
SATURDAY RACE ORDER
8:00 AM • B & C Four
8:20 AM • A Four
8:40 AM • Second & Third Varsity
9:00 AM • First Varsity