Terriers Sweep Columbia In Men's Rowing Action
April 27, 2002 | Men's Rowing
The Terrier men's crew enjoyed its finest day of the race season on Saturday (April 27th) as it swept to victories over Columbia in the varsity heavyweight, second varsity, and first freshman races on the Charles River.
In the featured varsity heavyweight race, the Terriers led from the start and never looked back. In fact, by the 500-meter mark, B.U. had open water over Columbia and went on from there for a six-length victory. The Terriers were timed in 6:19.21 over the 2000-meter course, while the Lions covered the distance in 6:37.23. With the win, B.U. improved its spring racing season record to 2-4, and Columbia slipped to 1-6.
"I thought we rowed very well," said Terrier head coach Rodney Pratt. "We led from the start and kept moving ahead from there. We needed this win, and by this margin, if we wanted to move up in the EARC rankings."
This past week, the Terriers were ranked 11th, while Columbia was 14th.
"I thought we rowed within ourselves today and we had good blade work," said Pratt.
This marked the second straight week that Pratt has gone with the same lineup and the continuity showed.
"We had a very good week of practice," said the coach. "We are getting better, and everyone is enjoying rowing."
The closest race of the day was in the second varsity event where B.U. edged Columbia by less than a second, 6:23.40 to 6:24.09. There were stretches during the race when the Terriers led by as much as half a boat length. However, Columbia refused to give in and came back each time to close the gap.
"I was very happy to see the junior varsity didn't give in each time Columbia came back," said Pratt. "Columbia showed some real guts themselves coming back each time, but I was proud of how our boat never gave up the lead."
The Terriers' first freshman boat got off to a slow start as the Lions led by a couple of seats through the first 200 meters of the course. However, as has been the custom during the racing season, B.U. came back with a strong second half and rowed to a 10-second win. The time was 6:26.16 for the Terriers to 6:36.48 for Columbia.
"This is the way we have rowed all year," said freshman coach Dave LeFebvre. "We need to get off to a better start. But, remember, everyone in the boat is a novice so our learning curve is very steep. We are certainly going in the right direction, and I am very proud with how we have been rowing."
| Men's Rowing Results vs Columbia |
| The Charles River--Boston, MA |
| April 27, 2002 |
| Varsity Eight |
| 1. Boston University, 6:19.21 |
| 2. Columbia, 6:37.23 |
| Second Varsity Eight |
| 1. Boston University, 6:23.40 |
| 2. Columbia, 6:24.09 |
| First Freshmen Eight |
| 1. Boston University, 6:26.16 |
| 2. Columbia, 6:36.48 |
