M. Heavyweight Crew Wins Adams Cup

In a weekend that witnessed the men’s and women’s heavyweight and lightweight crew teams in action, the men’s heavyweights stole the show by garnering the Adams Cup on Saturday afternoon.

In a separate competition for the Goldthwaite Cup, which also took place on Saturday, the men’s lightweights won second. The No. 8 Radcliffe heavyweights finished last against seven other teams during the Case Cup races, and the women’s lightweights finished in third place behind No. 1 Princeton and No. 2 Wisconsin on Mercer Lake, N.J.

Men’s Heavyweights

Harvard captured the Adams Cup and a victory over Penn and Navy on the windy Charles River.

Coming off of a tremendous win over Brown and a tough loss against Princeton, No. 3 Harvard faced tough competition from No. 7 Penn.

“We didn’t especially dominate the race,” said captain Jason Craw. “The conditions were rough, and we didn’t get off of the line well.”

The Crimson took a commanding lead in the first 500 meters of the race and held onto that advantage for the remainder of the race.

“We really took all of our water in the first 1000 meters,” Craw said. “We finished the race with a half-length lead.”

Harvard pulled in first with a time of 6:05.9 followed closely by Penn’s 6:07.6. Navy finished last with a time of 6:29.0.

The Crimson will compete against No. 8 Northeastern this weekend in a battle for home water.

“[Northeastern] always puts together a fast crew,” Craw said. “They beat us at head of the Charles. It’d be great to have the title of ‘Fastest Crew on the Charles.’”

Men’s Lightweights

Harvard raced against Yale and Princeton for the Goldthwait Cup as the lightweight showcase at the World Cup regatta on Saturday in New Jersey.

The race, which had been scheduled separately from the other races, coincided with the regatta in both time and nearness of location, so it was included as one of the collegiate races.

“It was really fun to be part of the WC regatta,” said senior Richard McCormack.

The Yale lightweights proved that they deserve their No. 1 ranking with their winning time of 5:56.4. No. 3 Harvard pulled in a time of 6:00.48, followed by Princeton’s 6:07.68.

“Yale took a lead after the first 500 meters, and we never responded,” McCormack said. “They finished the race leading by a couple seats of open water.”

Harvard will race against Yale again in Eastern Sprints in two weeks.

“Yale is the team to beat,” McCormack said. “We’ve got two weeks [to get ready]. This league is crazy because there are a lot of good boats. It’s anyone’s game now.”

Women’s Heavyweights

After losing to No. 6 Syracuse in a tight race last weekend, the No. 8 Radcliffe crew hoped to overtake No. 7 Yale on Saturday morning.

But these hopes fell when Yale won with a time of 7:00.5 over Radcliffe’s time of 7:05.7.

“It was a disappointing race,” said co-captain Mayme Hostetter.

Yale’s lead at the beginning of the race would prove to be the fatal advantage against the Black and White.

“They took a lead right off of the start,” Hostetter said. “We came back in the third 500, but they walked it back out again.”

After this weekend’s loss, it seems unlikely that the Radcliffe heavyweights will be able to garner an NCAA berth at the end of the year. Yet the successes of the other Black and White boats could help.

“The [second varsity boat] and the [third varsity boat] are having outstanding seasons,” Hostetter said.

The second varsity boat beat Yale’s time of 7:16.0 with its winning time of 7:09.8. The Black and White’s fourth varsity boat was also victorious with a time of 8:15.3, defeating Yale’s time of 8:43.0 and Yale-B’s 9:14.8.

The Black and White will race against No. 11 B.U. and M.I.T. this weekend.

“We’re excited to test our mettle against them,” Hostetter said.

Women’s Lightweights

In a race between the top three crews in the country, the Radcliffe lightweights finished third with a nonetheless impressive performance that may indicate the team’s future success.

No. 1 Wisconsin and No. 2 Princeton finished first and second, respectively, on Mercer Lake, N.J.

“It was a really great race for us,” said captain Laura Heyns. “Last time we raced [Wisconsin and Princeton], we were significantly behind, so it’s great to make up so much speed.”

Princeton pulled in the winning time of 6:47.4, followed by Wisconsin’s 6:49.73. Radcliffe finished with a time of 6:54.73.

“We get to race them two more times this season,” Heyns said. “I’m really excited because I think we can take them. It’s a really healthy competition with a lot of respect.”

The Black and White will take another shot at these teams at Eastern Sprints in two weeks. The Radcliffe lightweights are scheduled to compete against MIT on Saturday morning.