Women's Lights Impress Early, Claim First Class Of 1999 Cup Win On Lake Carnegie Since 2010

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The Princeton women's lightweights hadn't experienced a home win over Harvard in far too long. Saturday, during a loaded morning filled with top men's and women's programs, seemed like the ideal time to break that drought.

But the Tigers did it in dominant fashion as well.

Second-ranked Princeton ended a two-year drought without the Class of 1999 Cup by powering past sixth-ranked Harvard early, and never looking back. The Tigers built an early base of speed that held an open water lead fairly quickly, and then after a controlled middle thousand, they powered through a final sprint to secure the seventh Cup since it was introduced in 2006.

"We were really pleased with this race because we wanted to do a better job than we did against Stanford getting our bow out right out of the blocks," said senior coxswain Megan Mirabella, a four-year starter in the 1V. "We definitively worked on that change over the course of this past week, and were able to execute just that this morning. I was definitely a bit surprised at the size of the margin we were able to achieve against Radcliffe – given their strong history, they are never a crew to be underestimated – but moreso I'm excited, because we need to be achieving margins like that whenever possible if we're really looking to have our most ambitious season yet."

The victory was especially satisfying to Mirabella and the rest of her senior class, who made sure they had the chance to experience a home win over Harvard. There are certainly other goals on the horizon, but for one day, the Class of 2018 could certainly allow itself to enjoy this one.

"It really means a lot to me to be able to return the cup to Princeton's boathouse for my senior year," Mirabella said. "Both Kathleen Noble and I were in the boat that last won the Cup in 2015, which had made us the first boat to beat Radcliffe since their 2014 IRA victory, and I remember how meaningful it was to our team to get that Cup for that year's seniors. I think I speak for Emily, Kathleen, and myself when I say that returning the cup to Princeton's boathouse our senior year is incredibly meaningful, because it speaks to the years we've worked to put our team in a position to retain the Cup next year when we're gone, and is the first victory (hopefully of many) of our senior seasons!"

While the varsity eight showdown was the highlight race of the session, the Tiger coaching staff could take great satisfaction with the results throughout the morning. The varsity four topped Radcliffe by more than 11 seconds, while the double followed its win over Stanford with a resounding victory. A 3V8 boat, including many rowers in their first collegiate competition, stayed within a couple seconds of Radcliffe in its race.

"It always feels great to win this Cup and bring it back to Princeton, but this year felt especially good because the whole team raced so well," head coach Paul Rassam said afterwards.

Princeton will make the short trip to Mercer Lake next weekend to compete in the 2018 Knecht Cup regatta. This will be an important test for the Tigers, as Mercer Lake will be the site for the 2018 IRA national championships.

Varsity Eight
Princeton 7:16.9
Radcliffe 7:29.3

Varsity Four
Princeton 8:20.9
Radcliffe 8:32.1
Princeton Open C4 8:50.0

Varsity 2X
Princeton 9:03.4
Radcliffe 9:56.5

3V8
Radcliffe 8:29.0
Princeton 8:31.2

LINEUPS
1v8
Cox: Megan Mirabella
Stroke: Georgia Hellard Timms
Emma Hopkins
Laura Zecca
Kathleen Noble
Grace Cordsen
Lauren Sanchez
Emily Schneider
Annie Anezakis

Varsity 4
Cox: Heather Milke
Stroke: Madelynn Prendergast
Isabelle Chandler
Sandy Carpenter
Mackensey King

Double
Madeleine Travnik
Grace Miles

3v8
Cox: Ashley Scott
Stroke: Elizabeth Keim
Sophia Cai
Madison Spinelli
Camille Heubner
Jessie Giller
Maya Naphade
Kate Andre
Rebecca Mays

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