Big Green Enjoy Strong Final Day of Ivy Invite

Saturday, April 13

Princeton, N.J.

12:00 PM

Dartmouth College

Ivy Invite

Photo by: David Edington

Big Green Enjoy Strong Final Day of Ivy Invite

4/13/2024 9:42:00 PM | Women's Rowing

Dartmouth’s second varsity four finished ahead of both Columbia and Princeton

By: Justin Lafleur

PRINCETON, N.J. — The Dartmouth women's rowing team wrapped up the Ivy Invite on Saturday with strong success, which was highlighted by the second varsity four beating both Penn and Cornell. That boat beat every Ivy League opponent it faced over the Ivy Invite after topping Columbia and Princeton on Friday.

"This regatta was always going to be a really good check-in for us, where we can match up with Ivy League teams to see where we stack up and see some good out-of-conference teams in USC and Rutgers," said head coach John Graves. "Columbia is a team that's been ahead of us in recent years and yesterday, I think the varsity had a really good race. They ran level for about halfway and lost by a little over a length, but it's a good spot to be and hopefully we can close the gap closer to the Ivy League championships."

On Saturday, the varsity eight finished second out of three crews, posting a time of 6:55.345. It was only behind Penn (6:26.933) while ahead of Cornell (7:02.693).

"Penn is one of the best teams in the country, a really tough race for the varsity in some really tricky conditions that we didn't handle well, but definitely a humbling check-in for the team as to what the standard is," said Graves. "That's the standard and we need to get back to work to close that gap. Overall, this regatta was a great opportunity for us to see where we stand and get back to work to see if we can close the gap as we move towards Ivy championships in May."

Dartmouth's fours impressed all weekend. On Saturday, the second varsity four posted a time of 7:45.346, more than 20 seconds ahead of Penn and more than 30 seconds ahead of Cornell. The varsity four's time of 7:36.022 was less than six seconds behind Penn (7:30.146) and more than 16 seconds ahead of Cornell (7:52.544).

"Highlights from the weekend were really in the fours," said Graves. "The B winning over Penn and the A four losing to Penn by six seconds was a really great result."

The Big Green's second varsity eight also defeated Cornell on Saturday, posting a time of 7:04.785, which was ahead of the Big Red (7:17.353) and trailing Penn (6:47.311).

The weekend was a reminder of the strength of the Ivy League.

"The standard of speed in the league is pretty amazing," said Graves. "Yesterday, we had faster times than USC in three of our four boats. Even though we didn't directly go head-to-head, it was cool for the team to see they're ahead of a team like that. It's a sign that we're making progress."

The Big Green are set to return home next Saturday to host Fordham, Rhode Island and UMass at Lake Morey in Vermont.

Third Varsity Eight
1. Penn - 7:05.299
2. Cornell – 7:26.735
3. Dartmouth – 7:27.241

Second Varsity Four
1. Dartmouth – 7:45.346
2. Penn – 8:05.678
3. Cornell – 8:15.864

Varsity Four
1. Penn – 7:30.146
2. Dartmouth – 7:36.022
3. Cornell – 7:52.544

Second Varsity Eight
1. Penn – 6:47.311
2. Dartmouth – 7:04.785
3. Cornell – 7:17.353

Varsity Eight
1. Penn – 6:26.933
2. Dartmouth – 6:55.345
3. Cornell – 7:02.693