For the first time in a decade, all three boats from Dartmouth women's crew will join 15 other premier rowing teams at the NCAA Rowing Championships, marking the Big Green's third appearance at the event. Dartmouth will send entries for the varsity eight, second varsity eight and varsity four boats to Camden, N.J., for the event, hosted by Villanova University on May 29.
"It's nice to know that the rest of the country acknowledges that we can compete at that level," captain Kate Harney '09 said. "We're going into this knowing that we deserve to be there and we want to make our mark on the national stage."
This year, Harney said, the NCAA offered 16 bids to teams who were invited to bring all three of their boats to the championship. In past years, the NCAA had extended 12 bids, in addition to four at-large bids to teams who were permitted only to bring their varsity eight boats to the competition, she said. In 2007, Dartmouth received one of these at-large bids, and sent its varsity eight boat to the competition, where the boat placed eighth overall.
"We've been trying to improve not just the varsity eight. We've focused on the entire team," Harney said. "This just shows that as a whole, we've gotten faster."
Teams from four other Ivy League schools also earned spots in this year's championship: Yale, Radcliffe, Brown and Princeton.
The Big Green was the last of the 16 teams to be invited to the championships following its fifth-place finish at the EWRAC Sprints in Camden, N.J. ,on Sunday.
Dartmouth competed against defending Eastern Sprints champion and NCAA Team champion Brown, in five events on Sunday, with the Bears heading into the regatta as the number-one seed in the varsity eight, novice and varsity four events.
All of the top six seeds in the varsity eight race qualified for the grand final. Yale moved away from the field off the start, followed by the boat from Princeton, but the fifth-ranked Big Green squad remained in contention for a medal position. The first five boats stayed within five seats of each other through the halfway point of the race, as Brown, Radcliffe and Dartmouth vied for the bronze. The Bears mustered enough strength to push forward in the last 30 strokes, while Dartmouth finished the course in fifth place with a time of 6:27.6.
"It was a great way to finish up the season," Harney said. "Some of the boats had the best races of the season. We found the aggression that we were looking for all season."
In the second varsity grand final, Brown and Yale looked to separate themselves by the 500-meter mark, as Radcliffe, Princeton and Dartmouth battled for the bronze medal. Radcliffe and Princeton both inched away from the Big Green, however, and Brown secured the gold medal with 6:34.2, while the Big Green registered a time of 6:54.9, enough for a fifth-place finish.
In the novice grand final Yale, Brown and Cornell contended for medals, while Syracuse University, Columbia and Dartmouth duked it out for the final three spots.
The high-stroking crew from Brown came out strong in the race's first 500 meters, but Yale soon scrambled up on the Bears to claim a four-seat lead, and would eventually claim first place. Syracuse and Columbia both gained an early nine-seat advantage on the Big Green. The pack tightened up by the halfway point as the Big Green drew level with Syracuse during the final 500-meter stretch, eventually surpassing the Orange to secure fifth place with a time of 7:03.3.
Edging past Princeton in the final stretch of the course, the third varsity four A boat secured a spot in the grand finals by winning the morning heat. Dartmouth bested its original ninth-place seeding, posting a fifth-place finish in the grand final with a time of 7:40.7.
The Big Green heavyweights closed out the dual race season on a low note as the crews traveled to Syracuse, N.Y., to contend for the Packard Cup. Syracuse swept the Big Green in all the races to secure the Cup.
In the varsity eight race, Syracuse finished the course in 6:06.9, while Dartmouth crossed the finish line in 6:21.5.
Neck-to-neck at the start, Dartmouth's second varsity boat stuck with Syracuse until the race's halfway point. The Orange then broke open the race, gaining a full length on Dartmouth and securing the victory with a time of 6:13.7. Dartmouth registered 6:35.3.
Dartmouth's third varsity squad competed against the Orange boat that had secured a fifth-place finish in the grand finals at the Eastern Sprints. The Orange finished the race in 6:35.4, with Dartmouth coming in at 6:51.1.
After securing a fifth-place finish in the petite finals at the Sprints, the Big Green freshmen seemed poised to claim victory. Dartmouth stayed even with the Orange from the start, yet Syracuse edged ahead by the race's midpoint. Dartmouth challenged the Orange down the final stretch of the course, but Syracuse responded, forcing the Big Green to settle for second place. The Orange passed the finish line in 6:32.9, while Dartmouth posted the closest margin of the day, finishing in 6:36.4.
The Big Green heavyweights and lightweights will now begin preparation for the 2009 IRA Regatta, which takes place June 4 to 6 at Lake Natoma in Sacramento, Calif.
The original version of this article incorrectly stated that this year marked the Dartmouth women's crew team's first NCAA appearance in a decade. In fact, this year is the first since 1999 that the entire team will appear at the championships. Dartmouth's varsity eight boat last received a bid in 2007. In addition, the article incorrectly stated that the championships would be held at Villanova University. In fact, the event will be held in Camden, N.J., and will be hosted by Villanova.
