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Forecast Sends Ivy Champs To Carnegie, Where Open Readies For Big Challenge
May 13, 2016 | Women's Rowing - Open
IVY CHAMPIONSHIP LINKS: Live Video
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Veteran head coach Lori Dauphiny has seen almost everything in the sport of rowing. The former National Head Coach of the Year has coached some of the best crews in the sport, as well as individuals who would compete at the sport's highest level.
Yet, if you ask her what she expects this weekend at the 2016 Ivy League Championships, which were moved to Lake Carnegie because of wind projections at Mercer Lake, you'll likely get a shoulder shrug and a smile.
“We have so much youth that I'm really not sure what to expect, but I'm excited,” Dauphiny said. “There's just more youth. That's a good thing. All classes are represented in all the boats, which I think is cool. It's great to see different classes. Each brings something to the boat. I like the mix in all our boats.”
But that youth does bring unpredictability in a championship setting, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. Based on seedings, Princeton won't be favored to win any of the championship events Sunday afternoon, all of which will be streamed live on the Ivy League Digital Network. So a little unpredictability — perhaps some underclassmen who handle the conditions exceptionally well, perhaps the senior leaders keeping their boats focused in the frantic moments — could go a long way.
The first varsity boat has two of Princeton's three tri-captains in Erin Reelick and Meghan Wheeler, both of whom were members of the 2014 Ivy League championship eight; Reelick was also a member of the 2013 championship crew. The current Tiger boat will enter Ivies on the heels of a nine-race win streak, a stretch that has raised its national ranking from No. 9 to, well, No. 9.
A victory this weekend will undoubtedly get more attention.
Should they meet Sunday at 4:45 for the Ivy League championship, it will be the first time that both the top-ranked Brown and Princeton open rowing teams have shared water in more than seven weeks. In the sport of rowing, that might as well be a lifetime.
So the question is, how much has changed in that lifetime?
“We are not favored to win as a top boat or a team, but a championship is always a new ballgame,” Dauphiny said. “I do think Brown has gotten faster. But Yale is a very good crew, and Penn raced us really well. Harvard and Cornell will be tough as well.”
Princeton defeated each of those boats during the regular season with the exception of Brown, and Dauphiny feels her squad will be much more prepared to handle a full race this time around.
“We've worked on parts of the race plan since then,” she said. “We hadn't done many starts or shifts at that point. We've made progress in been putting each part of the race together, and
making it complete.
“They're a young group, a little more inconsistent than some crews on a daily basis, but have made progress each week,” Dauphiny added. “But they've handled the racing well. And they've handled the weekly work.”
The varsity eight (9-2, 6-1 Ivy) will row in the 7:15 heat from Lane 1, while the second varsity eight (8-3, 5-2 Ivy) will row in the 7:45 heat from Lane 2. Princeton will send a pair of fours to Ivies; the 4A will race from Lane 2 in the 8:15 heat, while the 4B will race from Lane 1 in the 8:45 heat. The third varsity eight will race from Lane 2 in the 9:30 heat and the 4C will race from Lane 2 in the 9:00 heat.
Heats carry added importance Sunday, as all finals will be four-boat races. Princeton has won three of the last five Ivy League titles (2011, 2013, 2014), though Brown enters the weekend as the reigning champion.
V8 • Heat #2 at 7:15 am • Grand Final at 4:45 pm
Heat (Lanes 1-4): Princeton, Yale, Cornell, Dartmouth
2V8 • Heat #2 at 7:45 am • Grand Final at 4:15 pm
Heat (Lanes 1-4): Yale, Princeton, Dartmouth, Cornell
V4A • Heat #2 at 8:15 am • Grand Final at 3:45 pm
Heat (Lanes 1-4): Yale, Princeton, Cornell, Penn
V4B • Heat #2 at 8:45 am • Grand Final at 3:15 pm
Heat (Lanes 1-4): Princeton, Harvard, Penn, Dartmouth
V4C • Heat #1 at 9:00 am • Grand Final at 2:45 pm
Heat (Lanes 1-3): Brown, Princeton, Columbia
3V8 • Heat #1 at 9:30 am • Grand Final at 2:15 pm
Heat (Lanes 1-3): Yale, Princeton, Harvard
BOAT-BY-BOAT RESULTS
Varsity Eight (9-2, 6-1 Ivy)
March 26: Brown 6:35.4, Ohio State 6:38.0, Princeton 6:38.3
April 2: Princeton 6:29.5, Columbia 6:56.0
April 8: Princeton 6:23.5, Harvard 6:32.6, Cornell 6:39.3
April 16: Princeton 6:29.6, Yale (tie) 6:33.1, USC (tie) 6:33.1
April 23: Princeton 6:44.5, Penn 6:51.3, Dartmouth 7:13.8, Buck 7:17.0
April 30: Princeton 6:47.5, Duke 7:03.3
Second Varsity Eight (8-3, 5-2 Ivy)
March 26: Brown 6:45.1, Ohio State 6:49.7, Princeton 7:01.0
April 2: Princeton 6:43.1, Columbia 7:04.3
April 8: Princeton 6:38.5, Harvard 6:52.3, Cornell 7:00.7
April 16: Yale 6:45.8, Princeton 6:48.9, USC 7:02.1
April 23: Princeton 7:02.4, Penn 7:07.2, Dartmouth 7:26.9, Buck 7:40.0
April 30: Princeton 6:55.5, Duke 6:58.3
Varsity Four (7-4, 5-2 Ivy)
March 26: Brown 8:04.4, Ohio State 8:10.0, Princeton 8:16.2
April 2: Princeton 7:37.0, Columbia 7:59.0
April 8: Princeton 7:25.2, Harvard 7:34.4, Cornell 7:40.3
April 16: Yale 7:42.3, USC 7:49.2, Princeton 7:51.9
April 23: Princeton 7:49.7, Dartmouth 8:02.1, Penn 8:09.5, Buck 8:12.9
April 30: Princeton 7:51.6, Duke 8:00.7
Third Varsity Eight (3-3, 2-3 Ivy)
March 26: Brown 7:49.3, Princeton 8:04.6
April 8: Cornell 6:59.9, Harvard 7:05.7, Princeton 7:09.2
April 16: Princeton 7:02.3, Yale 7:11.4
April 23: Princeton 7:27.1, Bucknell 7:27.6, Dartmouth 7:55.9
Varsity Four 'B' (6-2, 5-1 Ivy)
March 26: Ohio State 8:06.0, Brown 8:08.6, Princeton 8:26.7
April 2: Princeton 7:36.5, Columbia 7:43.4
April 8: Princeton 7:32.6, Harvard 7:40.5, Cornell 7:52.9
April 15: Princeton 7:50.8, Penn 8:04.5, Buck 8:09.8, Dartmouth 8:17.4