Despite being split between the Yale Invitational and the Princeton Chase this past weekend, Dartmouth crews were bound by a common strand -- success.
The Big Green varsity men's lightweight eight, which raced at Princeton, finished fourth in 13 minutes, 53.4 seconds. Yale won the lightweight eight division in 13:34.7. Dartmouth's B boat came in 12th in 14:14.
The A boat performed particularly well in fending off Princeton, which began the staggered-start race immediately after the Big Green. After finishing 15 seconds behind the Tigers at the Head of the Charles, Dartmouth answered each of Princeton's attempts to pass the Big Green during the weekend race. Princeton's top boat finished in 13:49.1.
"I was very pleased with our racing relative to the top crews," Coach Dick Grossman said. "Our first boat was four or five seconds behind last year's crew, but our second crew was 20 seconds ahead of last year's. I feel that we raced very well."
The women's varsity squad also matched the men's success at Princeton, where both squads raced in both the eight and the fours on a 2.75 mile course.
The Big Green women's crew faced 19 other teams, but only the Yale A boat was able to sneak ahead of the speedy Dartmouth women, who finished three seconds behind in second place.In the women's fours, Dartmouth A placed fifth with a time of 18:05 with Rutgers A winning in 17:46. Dartmouth B followed with a 18:15 and a sixth place finish. Dartmouth C powered its way to a surprising eighth in 18:26, ahead of Yale's A team.
"The trouncing of Princeton is significant," Coach Barbara Kirch said "and the fact that our B and C level boats beat all the other B and C boats of programs we compete against in the spring" is also important.
In Derby, Conn., the Big Green freshmen competed at the Yale Invitational on the Housatonic River.
The Dartmouth men dominated the Yale freshmen race, sweeping four of the top six spots. The lightweights finished first with a time of 15:20, followed by the heavyweights with a time of 15:27. The lightweight B boat came in fourth at 15:32 and the heavyweight B boat finished sixth in 15:36.
The women's novices also emerged victorious at Yale, finishing first by an astounding 25 second to beat out all 23 other entries. The Dartmouth B faced some early difficulties after hitting a buoy, but finished strong to earn ninth place with a time of 18:03.
"I'm pleased with our performance, but it's whether or not we measure up to the standards we've set for ourselves that's important," Coach Amanda Cashman said, "not the place we come in."
The women's squads race Saturday in Boston at the Foot of the Charles while the men race there Nov. 20.
