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Brown University
IRA National Championship
Men's Crew Sends Three Boats to Grand Finals on Day Two of IRA Championship
5/30/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Crew
IRA Central | Schedule | Day 2 Photo Gallery
WEST WINDSOR, N.J. – The No. 6 Brown men's crew advanced three boats to the grand finals, highlighted by a thrilling comeback victory by the second varsity, as the Bears wrapped up the second day of competition at the IRA National Championship Saturday at Mercer Lake.
Brown earned top-three finishes in the varsity, second varsity and third varsity semifinals and all three boats will row in the grand final on Sunday. The winner of the varsity eight will determine the IRA National Champion, while the three eights will collectively determine the Ten Eyck Team Trophy. The varsity four took fifth in the semifinal and will row in the petite final.
"I thought they raced well today," said head coach Paul Cooke. "The guys have done a nice job preparing for the Sprints and IRAs and it's nice to see it pay off. They concentrated and focused well, and put down a good performance when it counted."
Brown opened the morning with the third varsity semifinal, which featured strong starts all around, before California broke free for about a two-seat lead over Brown and Northeastern. Brown then moved up in an attempt to catch Cal, which set the stage for 200 meters of back-and-forth action between the two boats, with NU and Yale close behind fighting for third place. However, California made a strong push nearing 1,500 meters for a five-seat advantage as the Golden Bears crossed first at 5:44.71. Brown took runner-up at 5:48.12 to earn a spot in Sunday's grand final against Princeton, Harvard, Washington, Cal and Yale.
Once again, Brown and California battled in the next race, this time in the second varsity semifinal. Cal raced out for the early lead, followed by Boston University and Cornell, with Brown close in fourth. After BU made a push for second at 500 meters, Brown pulled level with Cornell for third place, before the Big Red eventually slipped into fourth to make it a three-boat race around the midway point. Brown overtook BU by about three seats at 1,200 meters and continued to press on the Golden Bears. Bruno made a furious comeback during the final 500 meters and stormed up to Cal near the finish tower, as both crews seemingly crossed at the same time. Nevertheless, the video replay confirmed that Brown crossed first at 5:39.930, edging Cal at 9:39.956 to complete the comeback victory. Brown will meet BU, Princeton, Washington, Cal and Yale in the final.
In the varsity eight, California moved out as the early leader followed by a pack of Princeton, Brown and Navy. Cal had a four-seat lead over Princeton and eventually built its lead to open water nearing the halfway mark. After Navy and Boston University fell back, Princeton and Brown battled for position in second place, before the Bears made a slight surge at 1,500 meters to move out in front of the Tigers. However, the Tigers pushed down the stretch and picked up a slim lead over the Bears for second place at 5:32.70, while Bruno crossed third at 5:33.15 for a spot in the grand final. Brown will take on Cal, Princeton, Washington, Harvard and Northeastern in the grand final on Sunday for the national title.
In the varsity four, Washington and California separated from the rest of the crews early on, followed closely by Harvard in third place. After Washington built a half-length lead over Cal at the midway point, Harvard joined the two boats as the top three to cross the finish line for a spot in the grand final. Brown finished fifth at 6:31.27 and will move on to the petite final on Sunday.
The Bears return to action for the third and final day of the IRAs on Sunday, May 31 on Mercer Lake. For more information, recaps, photos and continued coverage, please visit brownbears.com.
Saturday Results
M3V8 S2 (Top 3 to GF)
1 CALIFORNIA - 5:44.717
2 BROWN - 5:48.127
3 YALE - 5:50.569
4 NORTHEASTERN - 5:53.558
5 WISCONSIN - 5:53.858
6 NAVY - 5:59.648
M2V8 S2 (Top 3 to GF)
1 BROWN - 5:39.930
2 CALIFORNIA - 5:39.956
3 BU - 5:43.087
4 HARVARD - 5:44.666
5 CORNELL - 5:46.795
6 PENNSYLVANIA - 6:01.083
MV8 S2 (Top 3 to GF)
1 CALIFORNIA - 5:30.524
2 PRINCETON - 5:32.706
3 BROWN - 5:33.154
4 NAVY - 5:36.702
5 BU - 5:39.964
6 PENNSYLVANIA - 5:42.834
MV4 S1 (Top 3 to GF)
1 WASHINGTON - 6:24.057
2 CALIFORNIA - 6:26.596
3 HARVARD - 6:26.798
4 MARIETTA - 6:28.366
5 BROWN - 6:31.273
6 BU - 6:31.617
