Columbia
Head of the Charles Regatta (varsity)
Men's Rowing Opens Fall Campaign at Head of Charles Regatta
10/22/2007 12:00:00 AM | Heavyweight Rowing, Lightweight Rowing
Varsity heavyweight coach Mike Zimmer sent his varsity eight into the maelstrom of boats, rowers, and spectators, while head lightweight coach Scott Alwin fielded an eight and a four. Women's coach Melanie Onufrieff chose not to enter the regatta.
Although facing a strong field dotted with international and national team crews, the lightweight eight did reasonably well, placing 14th of 28 in the Lightweight Men's Eights race. The Lions were timed in 15:26.08 for the winding, three-mile course, which requires crews to go under seven bridges.
They rowed the course faster than boats from Penn, Yale, Delaware and Fordham, which finished 15 through 18. The New York Athletic Club won the race, followed by the Hollandia Boat Club, Rowing Canada, Princeton, Navy and Cornell.
“Our young guys did a good job attacking and staying in the thick of things,” said Alwin, coaching his first race since joining the Columbia staff in August. “It points us in the right direction ... This field was made up of international crews and experienced college ones. Next [Sunday], we should go against college competition in the Princeton Chase.”
Alwin's lightweight four finished 13th of 23 in its race, in 17:38.649. The New York A.C. also won that race, but Columbia finished better than Dartmouth and William & Mary, among others.
Like Alwin, Mike Zimmer also set his sights on the heavyweight varsity's next race, at the Princeton Chase Sunday. He'll be looking for a far more aggressive showing from his varsity eight.
“I'm a little disappointed,” he said after Columbia finished 24th of 44 in the Men's Heavyweight Eights event. “This wasn't a bad row, but we weren't as aggressive as we needed to be. We were a little under the cadence of the other crews in the race. It was a pretty clean row, but we will have to be more aggressive.”
Zimmer's eight, which included four sophomores and just two seniors, was timed in 15:16.680 for the three miles, better than boats from St. Joseph's, Georgetown, Dartmouth and the Vesper Boat Club, but trailing most of its Ivy competitors. A US Rowing shell won in 14:03.711, followed by Wisconsin, Brown, Princeton, California, Northeastern and Yale.
Both men's programs will give their freshmen a taste of college competition in Philadelphia's Head of the Schuylkill next Saturday, October 27, resuming varsity competition the next day in the Princeton Chase on Lake Carnegie.
Columbia's varsity and novice women will make their debuts in the Head of the Schuylkill.
