The men’s and women’s crew teams performed admirably against rival Williams in their latest dual meet. Williams boasts one of the premier crew programs in the country, often winning both the men’s and women’s NESCAC tournaments. Although the race was supposed to be a blowout, the men’s team managed to keep the race relatively close.
The men’s first boat performed especially well, losing to Williams by only seven seconds. Although seven seconds is a sizeable margin, it was a much smaller margin than most expected. In fact, many people at the dual meet were shocked by how close the varsity eight race was. Ben Record ’15, who is on the varsity eight, said he believed the good time is a testament to the team’s improvement. This week-to-week development shows promise for the future of a boat that will stay almost entirely intact next year. In fact, the varsity eight boat has only one senior and three juniors, and could morph into a powerhouse over the next few years.
The second varsity eight also put up a good fight, falling behind Williams by only 6.8 seconds. However, the third varsity eight did not do as well as expected, falling behind Williams by 19.2 seconds. This was especially disheartening because of the incredible season the third varsity eight has had. Prior to this match, it was undefeated, and many of the team members speculated that they had a chance to beat Williams. Unfortunately, they did not have the firepower to keep up. However, the third varsity eight was able to beat Williams’ B boat by almost 20 seconds. Overall, the men’s crew races signified that the gap between Williams and Wesleyan is narrowing.
The women’s team, unfortunately, suffered a blowout loss. In each of the three varsity races, the women’s team lost by a relatively large margin. However, this loss was not that disappointing, as Williams’ women’s crew team is one of the best in the country. Because Wesleyan’s and Williams’ women’s crew teams are so incomparable, it is unlikely that this race dealt a significant blow to Wesleyan’s ranking, and it still has a chance to procure a bid to the NCAAs.
Next week, Wesleyan crew has another dual meet against Trinity. This matchup looks to be a bit more winnable for Wesleyan, and hopefully a bit more fun for the rowers. Because of the long drive and difficulty associated with racing Williams, many of the riders were unenthusiastic about the matchup. Now that the race is over, Wesleyan crew can look ahead toward greener pastures, with another rival matchup next week.