Columbia University
Cherry Hill Invitational
Varsity Eights All Earn Top Finishes at Cherry Hill Invitational
4/22/2019 12:42:00 PM | Women's Rowing
Varsity Eight takes runner-up in top flight, second and third varsities post 1-2 finish
NEW YORK – The Columbia women's rowing team had three impressive finishes at the Cherry Hill Invitational, taking second place in the varsity eight while the second and third varsities finished first and second in their Grand Final on Saturday. The regatta was held on the Cooper River in Camden, New Jersey.
The varsity eight won their morning heat, defeating Marist, UConn, Lehigh and Delaware by over 10 seconds with a time of 6:53.35. The victory moved them on to the six-crew Grand Final, where they clocked in at 6:56.02, placing second behind Rhode Island. Georgetown was third, followed by Bucknell, Marist and MIT.
Columbia's second and third varsity crews each raced in the second varsity division and dominated their respective heats. The second varsity were 15 seconds ahead of the pack while the third varsity were more than 14 seconds clear in their race. Both crews advanced to the Grand Final and posted a 1-2 finish. The second varsity clocked a winning time of 7:05.98, which was just over four seconds ahead of their Columbia counterparts.
"We were rowing on the Harlem River the week leading up to the race, so the majority of our training was in the eights," head coach Emerson Curry stated. "We decided to prioritize the eights for this regatta and I thought we were okay overall. We saw some real elevation from our student-athletes in the third varsity, led by senior stroke Catie Aral. The varsity lost to a sharp and aggressive Rhode Island crew. I throught URI put together an impressive performance."
Severe wind and rain delayed Saturday's start time by about 90 minutes. The Lions scratched their varsity four from competition.
Columbia heads down to the Princeton Regatta on Saturday, where they will go head-to-head with Princeton, Wisconsin and Rutgers. The Lions and Tigers will hold an inaugural race for the Lori Dauphiny & Ed Hewitt Cup.
Players Mentioned
