April 1, 2012
San Diego Crew Classic Results
SAN DIEGO, Calif. - The Stanford Lightweights opened up their 2012 spring season by capturing the Ludus Tours Cup at the San Diego Crew Classic Sunday.
The lightweights raced two eights, an A and B boat, in the event.
The top-ranked varsity eight ("A") won the trophy, defeating 2011 IRA runner-up and third-ranked Princeton by seven seconds. The "B" boat finished fourth.
"It's always nice to start the season off with a win and to be able to do it at the San Diego Crew Classic is great," said Stanford lightweight rowing head coach Al Acosta. "We did some really good things out there today and, of course, there are some things that need a lot more work."
Despite a slow start, the "A" boat pushed out to an early lead in the first 500 meters and increased that margin with a solid body of the race. Battling some gusty winds, "B" boat defeated varsity crews from both Tulsa, MIT, and California. After falling behind in the first half of the race, the "B" boat stayed focused and fought back through the body of the race.
Four lightweight novices joined forces with four openweights to race the openweight novice 8+. In their first sprint race, the novices raced a hard-fought heat to advance to the petite final, where they were able to increase their lead over Sacramento State to finish fifth.
Stanford returns to action next Saturday, April 7, racing No. 2 Wisconsin at Redwood Shores.