CAMBRIDGE, Mass - The No. 8 Harvard men's heavyweight rowing team defeated No. 5 Brown in the 56th annual Stein Cup race on the Charles River. The Red and White had three first-place finishes out of the five events.
HARVARD HIGHLIGHTS
Harvard opened its Saturday by going head-to-head against Brown in the Varsity 8 race. At the start, Brown came out hot with enough power to place their bow ball ahead of Harvard's by one seat.
Brown maintained its position through the first 500 meters until the 750-meter mark, where both boats were even until the Crimson made its move to put their bow ball ahead.The Crimson executed its power shift move beautifully and started gaining seats as both boats passed the half-way point at the Massachusetts Ave. bridge.
The Crimson trusted its fitness and training plan, and pulled a gutsy power move to bring it into the 1500-meter mark and give it a three-quarter length lead. As both teams entered their final sprint, the Brown Bears make their move to maintain contact, but was no match for the Crimson. Harvard crossed the finish line first with a winning time of 5:59.3, ahead of Brown (6:01.2).
The Second Varsity 8 followed, but was delayed due to the wind affecting the boat alignments at the start. Once both boats had alignment, the Crimson and Bears were off, each with a good start. Brown gained a lead early and held a near-boat-length lead at the 500-meter mark, which it maintained through the 1,000-meter point, despite the Crimson's continued contact. With 500 meters left, the Bears broke away and established a firm lead to bring them across the line first with a time of 6:06.3. Harvard posted a time of 6:08.9.
The Crimson's Third Varsity 8 had a nail-biting race to the finish. Boston University was a guest in this race and the fourth varsity event but did not count towards the cup. Brown and Harvard were neck-and-neck, bobbing back and forth between first and second place for the first 1,000 meters. After taking a strong final 750 move, Harvard picked up the lead. With one last push to empty the tank in the final sprint to finish with a half-boat length lead, Harvard emerged victorious with a winning time of 6:02.6. Brown finished in 6:04.0.
The Fourth Varsity 8 had the third and final first-place finish with a time of 6:07.5, with Brown and Boston University in second and third, respectively.
WHAT'S NEXT
The Crimson travel to Princeton, N.J. to compete in the Compton Cup on Saturday, April 15th.
