Results

WORCESTER – The Northeastern men's rowing team kicked off postseason action on Sunday at the 72nd Eastern Sprints on Lake Quinsigamond. The Huskies entered three boats in the Sprints, with the first, second and third varsity boats reaching the third level, petite and grand finals, respectively.
 
In its morning heat, the first varsity was looking strong through most of the course in a tough fight with Harvard and Brown looking to earn a spot in the grand final, but Northeastern caught a crab with 150-meters to go forcing the boat to stop and regroup before restarting again. The stall allowed the rest of the field to catch the Huskies, with the Crimson and Bears taking the top-two spots before Columbia and George Washington claimed the third and fourth spots to send Northeastern to the third level final with a time of 5:54.352.
 
Needing a successful performance in the third level, NU bounced back in a big way. The Huskies, taking on Navy and George Washington, among others, got out to a quick start to establish an early lead before continually building it during the remainder of the race, eventually taking open water to win at 5:37.637, six seconds ahead of the Midshipmen.
 
The second varsity found itself in a tough battle during its morning heat against Yale and Brown, going stroke for stroke down the course with the top two finishers advancing to the grand. The Huskies, seeded sixth entering the weekend, took Brown down to the wire in a rematch from last month's Dreissigacker Cup on the Seekonk River, but it was the Bears who prevailed by a little more than a second to knock Northeastern to the petite final with a time of 5:41.926 to Brown's 5:40.119. Yale won the heat at 5:38.751.
 
It was another tight race in the petite for the second varsity later in the afternoon with all boats overlapping throughout the duration. Northeastern and George Washington jockeyed for position down the course, with Wisconsin also entering the conversation for a top two spot, but it was the Colonials who finished first overall with a time of 5:42.980 to edge the Huskies by less than a second (5:43.140).
 
The third varsity took care of business in its morning heat with a second place finish (5:47.446) over Navy, George Washington and Penn to advance to the grand final along with Yale. It was a stacked field in the afternoon grand with the likes of Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Brown and Wisconsin as the Crimson and Bulldogs separated themselves from the pack to clearly secure the first and second positions, while the four remaining crews continued to pull for the third spot, with the Huskies eventually taking sixth at 5:49.028.
 
The Huskies made their 51st appearance at the Eastern Sprints on Sunday, and has participated in every sprint since 1966. The Red and Black has captured five first place finishes at the championship regatta—two by the varsity eight (1972, 1973), one by the second varsity eight (2014), one from the varsity four (2015), and one by the freshman eight (1978). In total, NU eights have appeared in 90 Eastern Sprints grand finals (1V: 31, 2V: 31, freshman eight: 25; 3V: 3).
 
It was also the 17th Eastern Sprints appearance for head coach John Pojednic, whose eights have made the grand final 31 times, including 11 appearances by the varsity eight. Under Pojednic, who is in his 17th season at the helm of the Northeastern program, the Huskies have posted 12 medal-winning performances, including a second-place finish by the varsity eight in 2016 a gold from the second and third varsity eights in 2014, and another first place finish from the varsity four in 2016.
 
Results
First Varsity – Heat
Harvard - 5:32.785
Brown - 5:36.979
Columbia - 5:40.006
George Washington - 5:41.327
Northeastern - 5:43.352
MIT - 6:02.516
 
First Varsity – Third Level Final
Northeastern - 5:37.637
Navy - 5:43.873
Georgetown - 5:44.213
Holy Cross - 5:52.324
MIT - 5:54.704
Rutgers - 6:00.217
 
Second Varsity – Heat
Yale - 5:38.751
Brown - 5:40.119
Northeastern - 5:41.926
Syracuse - 5:45.148
Navy - 5:48.433
Rutgers - 6:20.211
 
Second Varsity – Petite Final
George Washington - 5:42.980
Northeastern - 5:43.140
Wisconsin - 5:45.275
Syracuse - 5:47.122
Columbia - 5:48.766
Dartmouth - 5:49.207
 
Third Varsity – Heat
Yale - 5:44.869
Northeastern - 5:47.446
Navy - 5:50.690
George Washington - 5:58.248
Penn - 6:02.548
 
Third Varsity – Grand Final
Harvard - 5:37.026
Yale - 5:39.000
Princeton - 5:42.812
Brown - 5:44.123
Wisconsin - 5:48.467
Northeastern - 5:49.028