Shocking: Harvard Heavies Lose First Dual Race Since 2001

So much for streaks.

It took half a decade, but the Harvard varsity heavyweights finally had a bad day. And after five years of perfection, the Crimson came up five tenths of a second short.

Harvard dropped its season opener in a shocker at Brown on Saturday, losing by one seat in the furious sprint to the finish. It marked the first time since an April 2001 loss to Princeton that Harvard has surrendered a dual race. The win gave No. 7 Brown its first Stein Cup victory since 2000 and sent the No. 3 Crimson to an unfamiliar 0-1 dual record.

“Losing is never fun, no matter what the streak or the history,” captain four-seat Morgan Henderson said. “We’re using this to build on.”

Harvard saw its streak end in the most dramatic of ways, as Brown nipped the Crimson by a four-foot margin—the equivalent of one seat. The race stayed tight from start to finish, with the Bears’ early six-seat lead the largest either team would claim throughout.

Brown broke out to that six-seat margin within the race’s first 20 strokes, and Harvard remained six seats back throughout the first 500 meters.

“We expected them to start pretty quickly,” Henderson said. “But we sort of expected to draw them back in, like we did most of last season.”

After the Bears’ quick start, the two boats maintained a stalemate until the midway point. Harvard’s surge at the 1000 brought both crews even, and the Crimson fought to gain a three-seat lead in the third 500 meters.

As both boats entered the final 500, Harvard clung to its three-seat lead and seemed primed to make a late surge and secure its 25th straight win.

But Brown, urged forward by a partisan crowd that waited screaming at the finish line, did what no other crew has done in four seasons: out-sprint Harvard in the final 20 strokes. The Bears jumped the Crimson with 200 meters remaining, erasing the three-seat deficit and claiming the narrowest of margins as the boats began their final strokes.

And after both boats had stopped after the finish, neither knowing who had won, the same Brown crowd that had sparked the boat’s surge in the final sprint let out a celebratory yell when officials ruled the Bears the winner. A camera used at the finish settled the debate, and Harvard left Providence with a blemished record.

“We didn’t know what to expect,” Henderson said. “Our coach has always told us to be prepared to have a tough race and be down at the 1000, and then to push harder than them if that happens. We tried, but I guess we came up a little bit short.”

The shocker in the varsity race was the only loss of the day for Harvard, which claimed open water victories in the second varsity, varsity four, and novice eight races.

The second varsity, composed primarily of sophomores from last year’s first freshman boat, downed a similarly sophomore-laden Brown second boat. Last year, Brown’s freshman eight took home Sprints gold to the Crimson’s bronze, though Harvard claimed silver at the IRAs in June.

“The guys we were racing was mostly the freshman boat from last year,” said sophomore second varsity stroke George Kitovitz. “It was nice to beat those guys.”

In the second varsity race, Brown jumped Harvard off the start and claimed a four-seat advantage within the first twenty strokes. Harvard was able to keep Brown from adding seats as the two boats settled into the first 500.

“We knew they were going to be strong and have a good start,” Kitovitz said. “That’s what their style of race is.”

A steady first 500 meters left the margins relatively unchanged. But while Brown stayed steady, the Crimson took up the rating at the 800-meter mark and made a concerted push as both boats headed to the midway point. Harvard used the piece to make a definitive move, establishing open water as the crews entered the second half.

“We really went through them at the 1000,” Kitovitz said. “Then it got more painful—but comfortable at the same time.”

The second varsity cruised to an open water victory, crossing in 5:52.4. Brown followed in 5:57.9, with nearly a boatlength of open water separating the two crews. It was a positive start for the second varsity, which endured a topsy-turvy season last year.

The first freshman boat posted a time of 5:54.1 to claim yet another dominant win over host Brown, as the Bears finished two boatlengths behind in a time of 6:00.1.

Harvard returns to action next weekend in a Compton Cup showdown with No. 1 Princeton, against whom the Crimson varsity has not lost on the Charles since Harry Parker became head coach in 1963.

“[This race] was a kick in the pants,” Henderson said. “Hopefully we’ll just use this and it will light a fire under us for next week.”

—Staff writer Aidan E. Tait can be reached at atait@fas.harvard.edu.