Princeton University
The Compton Cup: Harvard and MIT
Players Mentioned
Heavyweights Join Exclusive Company, Top Harvard On Charles For Compton Cup
April 16, 2016 | Heavyweight Rowing
WATCH THE COMPTON CUP RACE
The third-ranked Princeton heavyweight rowing left the Charles River Saturday morning with the Compton Cup, marking only the second time since 1957 that the Tigers accomplished that feat.
Amazingly, that isn't even the most exclusive club that this Princeton boat joined.
The 2016 heavyweights also became the first Tiger V8 to repeat as Compton Cup victors since that 1957 crew — in fact, over the last 80 years, there were only two repeat victories for Princeton over Harvard in this regatta.
The first was 1956 and 1957.
The second is 2015 and 2016.
Princeton won three of four races Saturday morning, including a varsity eight showdown between the third-ranked Tigers and the fifth-ranked Harvard Crimson. The Tigers took the race in 5:41.8, one and a half seconds faster than the Crimson. MIT, an annual competitor in this historic rivalry, battled hard and finished third in 6:06.9.
Quick starts were the recipe for success for each of Princeton's winning boats. The first varsity grabbed a lead by the 250-meter mark and built on it, but it never quite pulled away from a tough Harvard boat. The Crimson had rallied for a win over Brown only one week earlier, but the Tigers would never allow Harvard to draw even.
"I am extremely proud of our team's performance today," head coach Greg Hughes said. "The Basin served up some challenging conditions today, and Harvard is always a very tough opponent. Historically, this race has gone to Harvard, and today it went our way. It's great to see the hard work we've done pay off. There is more hard work to do. We'll enjoy this one for a day and then get back to it."
The Princeton 3V and 4V also got out to quick starts, and the 3V was the only boat in any race that was able to draw clearly away from its opponent. The 3V took its race in 5:50.8, 8.5 seconds ahead of Harvard.
"We knew Harvard was going to be our toughest competitor yet and that they would make a strong push around the thousand meter mark, so we wanted to get ahead early," senior bow Greig Stein said. "We were able to get open water by the time they made their push, and we were very comfortable for the second half of the race. Conditions were really bad today which made boat set of absolute importance. Our blades didn't touch the water once during the race, which is a testament to the skill bow pair has. The 3V is a front-wheel-drive kind of boat and we were prepared for the tough conditions on the basin today.
"The 3V has been spinning a lot of silk recently on Carnegie and it was great to be able to bring it up to Boston," Stein added. "There is a lot of young talent in the boat, and I am excited to be a mentor to the more rookie members of the team this season. They still have a lot to learn."
"We were pleased with the execution, we did what we needed to do," sophomore Jonathan Lord said. "Having a bow man with so much silk and power too, it would give any crew confidence progressing through the season."
The 4V got out early and kept its lead, winning by just under two seconds. The Harvard 2V was the only Crimson boat which led after 500 meters, and it was actually able to lead by about a length before Princeton started a strong push in the second half of the race. The Crimson responded, though, and Harvard won by just over three seconds.
Princeton will now turn its attention to next Saturday, when it heads to the Housatonic River for a huge showdown against the top-ranked Yale Bulldogs and No. 8 Cornell in the Carnegie Cup regatta. Yale is the reigning Ivy League/Sprints champion, and it also won the Royal Henley Regatta last summer, while Princeton was the East's top finisher at the IRA national championships last June.
First Varsity
Princeton 5:41.8
Harvard 5:43.3
MIT 6:06.9
Second Varsity
Harvard 5:44.7
Princeton 5:47.9
MIT 6:24.3
Third Varsity
Princeton 5:50.8
Harvard 5:59.3
Fourth Varsity
Princeton 6:01.2
Harvard 6:03.1
LINEUPS
1v
Cox Mcfall
8 George
7 Francis
6 Mead
5 Barakso
4 Livingstone
3 Eble
2 Northrop
1 Kontinnen
2v
Cox Barton
8 Morgan
7 Barker
6 Vystavel
5 D'Agostino
4 De Groot
3 Chance
2 Goldman
1 Benstead
3v
Cox Wylie
8 Wambersie
7 Toch
6 Elsegood
5 Bernhard
4 Lord
3 Watt
2 Palmer
1 Stein
4v
Cox Sola
8 Naylor
7 Johnson
6 Guyett
5 Wiggins
4 Lawton
3 Levine
2 Helmers
1 Evans
5v
Cox Noordin
8 Doyle
7 Moskovitz
6 Clark
5 Ruscus
4 Michael
3 Bao
2 Lindfield Roberts
1 Segal