Men's Crew Splits Dual Race against Yale, Concedes Albert Cup

3/29/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Crew

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Brown men's crew picked up a pair of victories in the second varsity and freshmen/third varsity races against Yale, but fell in the varsity eight to concede the inaugural Albert Cup, as the Bears took to the waters of the Seekonk River on Saturday afternoon in the first race of spring season.

This was the inaugural running of the new Albert Cup, named for Christian Albert '91, and his father, a Yale oarsman. The event took place on a day fitting for the winter of 2015, featuring a breeze from the north, 15 mile per hour winds and 34 degrees with snow and sleet.

The fourth varsity crews were the first to race. With a staff of mostly walk-on athletes, this was the first spring 2,000-meter racing that many of the Brown rowers had ever done outside of practice. In the opening strokes, the excitement of the young Brown crew was evident, racing aggressively to keep pace with the more experienced Yale crew, and even pressing out to a slight lead in the early strokes of the race. However, as the race went on and the water deteriorated, the relative inexperience of the Brown crew began to form and the Yale crew took control, working its way to a substantial lead, which it held for the remainder of the race. The Yale 4V crossed the line in 6:19, with the Brown 4V following at 6:33.

The third varsity race was next, which featured the Brown 3V, the Yale 3V, and because Yale did not field a freshman boat, the Brown freshmen were invited to race in this event. At the start, the Brown freshmen and the Yale 3V came out of the blocks hot, with the Brown 3V behind the top two crews. As the starting high strokes came to a close, the Brown freshmen had about four seats on the Yale 3V, however, the Bulldogs were hanging tough, until the Freshmen took a push at the 1/4 mark and opened their lead up to a full length. At the halfway mark the young Bears made another big push out to an open water lead, and continued to gain ground until the finish line. The Brown freshmen crossed at 5:54, with the Yale 3V finishing at 6:00 and the Brown 3V in third with a time of 6:22.

The next race was the junior varsity event. These two boats came off the blocks very well matched for speed, and raced bow-to-bow for the first 1/4 of the race, each boat working hard to get the advantage. At the 1/4 mark, Brown made a stronger push, and began to build a slow but steady advance through the second quarter of the race. At the halfway mark, Brown made another push to open the gap, holding the Yale crew to a small open water lead for the remainder. The Brown JV crossed the line in 5:46, while Yale finished at 5:50.

The final race was the 1V, with the new Albert Cup on the line. With a fresh squall descending on the racecourse all but obscuring the finish line, the race began. After the opening volley, it was clear that Yale had had a slightly better start, and as the crews settled into their race rhythms, the Yale crew had a lead of about two seats. At the quarter mark, the Bears took their first push and brought themselves just shy of even, but the effort was answered with a move from the Yale crew that walked its lead back out to about two seats. With the midway point approaching quickly, the Yale crew shifted up, and started to gain ground. As the two crews entered the final stretch, the water began to deteriorate, and Bruno tried to increase the cadence to get back into contention, but they could not get the traction they needed to reduce what was now a six-seat lead. In the final strokes of the race, one of the oarsmen in the Brown boat caught his oar in the water and was unable to row for the final 100 meters, further increasing the margin between the two boats. In the end, the Yale crew finished in a time of 5:35, while Brown crossed at 5:42.

The Bears will take to the water next week, racing against reigning national champion Washington, on Saturday, April 4th at 8 a.m.

Lineups
Varsity
Cox: Neil Mckenzie
Anders Weiss
Max Lowndes
Finn Meeks
Whiting Tennis
Brooks Reavill
David Lazris
Peter Woolley
Hunter Leeming