The women’s crew team placed first in 12 of the 14 Ivy League Invitational races this weekend at Carnegie Lake in Princeton, New Jersey. On Saturday, the team faced off against Rutgers University and the University of Southern California and raced Columbia, Dartmouth, Oregon State University and the University of Virginia on Sunday.
“I think that I speak for all the coaches, staff and athletes when I say that we were definitely pleased with our results at the Ivy Invitational,” wrote Head Coach John Murphy in an email to The Herald. “It was excellent competition from different leagues including the PAC-12 and I think the team welcomed the challenge.”
On Saturday, Bruno set the tone for the weekend, completing a four-race sweep with victories by First Varsity 8, First Varsity 4, Second Varsity 8 and Second Varsity 4. The largest margin of victory came in the First Varsity 4 race — Brown clocked in at 7:07.901, over 12 seconds faster than second place USC.
The remaining races that day were canceled due to inclement weather.
“I am especially proud of our ability to stay determined and focused amidst weather-related race delays and cancellations,” wrote Ashley Giannetti ’24 in an email to The Herald via Brown Athletics. “Our performance this past weekend definitely demonstrates our vigor and drive as a team, and I am extremely excited to continue building off this momentum over the coming weeks.”
On Sunday, the team dropped just two out of the day’s 10 races. First Varsity 8, First Varsity 4 and Second Varsity 8 each swept their two races of the day, while Second Varsity 4 and Third Varsity 8 each added one more win to the team’s total of eight victories.
First Varsity 4 once again posted the largest margin of victory on Sunday, finishing nearly nine seconds faster than second place Oregon State in their first race of the day. Against Virginia and Dartmouth in the second race, they narrowly won by less than three seconds.
“I thought that our Varsity 4s racing in the last session was gritty and tough and definitely impressive,” Murphy wrote.
Brown did not finish behind any Ivy League school this weekend, despite this year being “one of the most competitive years the Ivy League has (had) in a long time,” according to Emily Jaudon ’24.
“It was an excellent opportunity to test our speed against other programs in our conference earlier in the season,” Jaudon wrote in an email to The Herald via Brown Athletics. “We knew that the racing would be close, and I think everyone did a great job navigating race day anxiety and finishing strong across all boats.”
The team will look to carry this momentum into their race against Cornell at home on the Seekonk River this Saturday.
“We will prepare for a strong showing against Cornell by continuing to execute race pieces on our home course, no matter the conditions,” Jaudon wrote. “The tidal nature of Seekonk provides challenges, and having multiple opportunities to practice is definitely an advantage that will help us come race day.”
