Dartmouth in a Strong Position After Day One of IRA National Championship

By: Justin Lafleur

CAMDEN, N.J. – The Dartmouth men’s lightweight rowing team saw both its first and second varsity eights qualify for grand finals following strong heats on Friday at the IRA National Championship.
 
The second varsity eight began the day, and the regatta, by placing second in its heat with a time of 5:52.760. The Big Green only trailed Penn (5:49.120) and was less than one quarter of a second ahead of both Yale (5:52.940) and Georgetown (5:53.010) in a down-to-the-wire finish for top three and qualification into the grand final.
 
The varsity eight followed by also coming in second (5:42.910), just ahead of MIT (5:43.110) while beating Ivy League foes Yale (5:47.550) and Columbia (6:01.330). Dartmouth only trailed Harvard (5:39.840) and that was by barely over three seconds.
 
The varsity four came in ninth in its time trial with a time of 6:31.749 then came in fifth in the AB semifinals (6:54.490). The Big Green will compete in the B final on Saturday. Saturday’s B final is set for 2:40 p.m.
 
Meanwhile, the two eights will compete in grand finals Sunday, with the 2V set for 10:10 a.m. and varsity eight at 11:40.

Complete Results
 
Varsity Eight
Heat 1
1. Harvard – 5:39.840
2. Dartmouth – 5:42.910
3. MIT – 5:43.110
4. Yale – 5:47.550
5. Columbia – 6:01.330
 
Second Varsity Eight
Heat 2
1. Penn – 5:49.120
2. Dartmouth – 5:52.760
3. Yale – 5:52.940
4. Georgetown – 5:53.010
 
Varsity Four
Time Trial
9. Dartmouth – 6:31.749
(out of 11 crews)
 
Semifinal
1. Penn – 6:26.010
2. Harvard – 6:28.550
3. Mercyhurst – 6:29.590
4. Princeton – 6:53.030
5. Dartmouth – 6:54.490