By Max Nagel, News Correspondent
The men’s rowing team earned their 10th Arlett Cup in the 12th annual race Saturday morning in Boston in a sweep of Boston University. The women’s team also raced this weekend, placing second against the University of Pennsylvania and Syracuse University in the Orange Challenge Cup.
The men’s Varsity 8 finished with a time of 6:01.5, beating BU by 1.7 seconds. For nearly all of the race, Northeastern held either a six-seat or full-length lead over their opponent. The Terriers made a push in the last few hundred meters, but the Huskies were able to hold them off with a strong final sprint.
The Freshman 8 had a close race, beating BU by only .8 seconds. After retaining a moderate lead for most of the race, BU began to slowly inch their way toward the Huskies’ bow, but it was no match for the freshman.
The final race of the day was between Northeastern’s second Varsity 8 and BU’s second and third Varsity 8s. Northeastern commanded the race, winning by a margin of 7.7 seconds, completing the sweep.
“I certainly expect our crews to perform to the best of their ability on race day,” men’s head coach John Podjednic said. “I anticipate very challenging and close races from some very formidable opponents and our crews will need to work very hard day to day and week to week to make sure that we are gaining speed in preparation for our upcoming duels, cup matches and championship races.”
In Syracuse, the women’s crew competed in the Orange Challenge Cup against Penn and Syracuse. The race dates back to 1977, when women’s rowing became a collegiate sport and the Cup is currently one of the oldest trophies in women’s rowing.
The strong headwinds on the water Saturday were nothing unusual for a race, but an element all crews had to overcome. Ultimately, Northeastern finished second overall, as Penn walked away with their 11th Orange Challenge Cup for the first time in 15 years.
“I thought our crews raced aggressively in tough headwind conditions,” women’s head coach Joe Wilhelm said. “We need to row with a long aggressive rhythm when the racing heats up in the second half of the race.”
The Varsity 8 crossed the line only 4.6 seconds behind Penn, who held a lead for much of the race. In the last 1000 meters, Northeastern tried to make a move on Penn, but they were able to maintain the lead through the finish.
The third Varsity 8 finished second behind Penn, while the second Varsity 8 and the two 4s all finished in third place behind the other schools.
“It’s always a tough battle when these two programs get together,” Wilhelm said.
The women will travel to Lake Monticello in Charlottesville, Va., to take on Clemson, Michigan State, Minnesota, Notre Dame, San Diego and Virginia in the Virginia Invitational Saturday.
The men will return to the Charles River Saturday when they host Brown University in the Dreissigacker Cup.
