Harvard, the nation's top-ranked crew, came off the stake boat flying and continued to fly over the rest of the 2000 meters to defeat Northeastern by four lengths in the 19th annual Charlie Smith Cup on the Charles River Saturday.
For the Crimson, it was their 10th consecutive defense of the Smith Cup. They lead the Smith Cup 16-3 and the all-time series 24-3.
Harvard, fighting a slight head wind, had a seat lead at the settle and increased it to six seats by the 500 meter mark. By the 1000 mark, the Crimson had widened the margin to nearly two lengths. They crossed the finish line at 6:02.2 to the Huskies' 6:17.3.
The Crimson won the second varsity race 6:11.7 to 6:23.7, and just nosed out NU in a highly competitive freshman race, 6:08.2 to 6:09.3.
The Huskies are now 1-3 on he regular regatta season. They will now prepare for next Sunday's Eastern Sprints at Lake Quinsigamond in Worcester, Mass. Start times are yet to be determined.
Varsity: Harvard 6:02.2; NU 6:17.3
2nd Varsity: Harvard 6:11.7; NU 6:23.7
Freshman: Harvard 6:08.2; NU 6:09.3
Varsity Four: Harvard 7:00.8; NU 7:05.2
Freshman Four: Harvard 7:07.9; NU 7:12.5
