Princeton Tops Radcliffe Lightweights

The fourth time wasn’t a charm either for the Radcliffe women’s lightweight crew on Sunday.

Princeton had the Black and White’s number yet again at the Eastern Association of Women’s Racing Colleges (EAWRC) Sprints, defeating Radcliffe’s varsity eight by less than a single boatlength—as it has in each of the crews’ four meetings this season.

“It was pretty frustrating,” senior four-seat Erin Barnhart said. “We were definitely hoping to beat them this time but we did have a solid race we have a clear idea of what we need to do before nationals.”

The Tigers are the only opponent whom the Black and White has not handily defeated.

Princeton captured the lead early, bursting out of the gate with a strong, clean start that propelled the Tigers to a half-boat length lead over the rest of the field.

It was that margin that ultimately earned Princeton its victory as Radcliffe never managed to draw even.

Radcliffe and Wisconsin both held fast early, however, slowly cutting the deficit as the course reached its midway point.

Radcliffe thrived during the middle 1000 meters, making a significant dent in the Tigers’ lead as the race reached the final sprint.

“I think we seem to, as a boat, sometimes take a little

while to get into our groove,” junior Avaleigh Milne said. “We’ve had more effective later parts of the races.”

But the Badgers, who have steadily improved since their most recent meeting with the Black and White, could not maintain the pace and the three-boat race was weaned down to two.

Leaving the field in their wake, the two boats battled over the remaining length of the course with neither one able to definitively shake the other.

“They were able to respond to all our moves,” Barnhart said. “That’s a tricky position for us to be in.”

Hastening towards the line, Princeton edged ahead ever so slightly, finishing in 7:06.04—2.72 seconds ahead of Radcliffe.

Wisconsin finished a distant third, 7.62 seconds behind the Tigers, while Georgetown took fourth and William & Mary placed fifth, 21.18 and 41.7 out of first, respectively.

For the Black and White, a second-place cumulative finish is a one rank improvement upon the third place finishes of the last three years.

“The good part is that at last year’s sprints, varsity lost to them by like 12 seconds,” Milne said. “But at least we know they’re more within our reach.”

A strong two-boat effort in the lightweight fours secured the runner-up position.

Princeton would not be denied, outpacing the pack by 7.84 seconds. But third and fifth place efforts from Radcliffe’s two entries vaulted the crew over the Badgers, who placed second in the four-women event and third in the varsity eights.

“Princeton clearly was the fastest boat out there,” junior Bonnie Scott said. “We knew it’d be hard to catch them. We were just going out there trying to keep pace with them.”

The Black and White seeks to strip the No. 1 Tigers of their national championship when the two return to Camden’s Cooper River for the third time this year, competing at the IRA National Championships beginning May 29.

—Staff writer Timothy J. McGinn can be reached at mcginn@fas.harvard.edu.