Crew: Women’s open team preps for postseason

The most successful team this weekend was the women’s open crew, which is looking to defend its national title from a year ago in the first varsity race. After starting the season a little slowly with second-place finishes in two of its first three races, Princeton has picked up steam lately, defeating its last three opponents.

“I think this performance did, in some ways, represent a step forward, but we obviously have a ways to go,” senior Kelly Pierce said. “There is so much we can improve upon, as evidenced by the bits and pieces of good races we execute in practice. We are now at the point in the season where we need to put those bits together and execute a solid piece.”

Consistency seems to be the key for this team, especially in a season in which the national championship race is so wide-open. Despite Princeton’s slow start, the Tigers still sit as the seventh-ranked team in the country, having only lost to top-five opponents in Michigan and USC. Princeton is also the highest ranked Ivy League team, and it will need consistency down the stretch to compete at the top level.

“Results in the Ivy League have been really close this year, and margins within the entire Division I rowing world have suggested that, while there are some clear front-runners for the NCAA title, the field is wide-open,” Pierce said. “Having lost twice this season, we know we need to get some work done to put ourselves in the position to be contenders.”

The women’s open crew’s focus now turns to the upcoming Eastern Sprints, which take place on May 13. The Tigers have a lot of time to prepare for Sprints and try to find the elusive and important consistency they have been searching for all season. The Tigers are considered the favorites heading into Sprints, as they stayed undefeated in Ivy League races all season, but Princeton should by no means take a victory for granted.

“Sprints is going to be a barn burner, make no mistake,” Pierce said. “It is great that we have remained undefeated in the Ivy League thus far, but margins really were so close across all teams that past performance cannot be considered a predictor of the future.”

Despite not going undefeated, as they did last year, the Tigers have shown the strength of their program, ranking seventh nationally in a season that members of the team are upset about. Regardless of their imperfect record, the Tigers have a great shot at once again winning their conference in the coming weeks.

“I have confidence that we can do it, but it will require nothing less than our best,” Pierce said. “Every team out there is hungry for the win, and it’s going to be an all-out brawl to get our bow ball across the finish line first.”

All four crews will rest for a weekend before competing at Sprints on May 13. The men’s heavyweight and lightweight races will be held at Worcester, Mass., while the women’s open and lightweight races will be held at Cherry Hill, N.J.