WORCESTER, Mass. – This past weekend, the Northeastern Men's Rowing team took to Lake Quinsigamond for the Eastern Sprints Championship Regatta—one of the most competitive collegiate rowing events of the spring season. With IRA bids and conference rankings on the line, the Huskies battled through tight racing across the board and came away with strong performances, a gold medal in the four, and an automatic qualifying spot at the IRA National Championship.
The morning began with heat racing across all boat classes. The Third Varsity Eight set the tone for the day with an impressive performance in a stacked field. Locked in a three-way battle with Brown and Penn for two spots in the A Final, the Huskies showed poise and grit down the entire course. Penn took the heat win, while Northeastern powered through in second, finishing ahead of Brown to claim their spot in the Grand Final.
In the First Varsity Eight heat, the Huskies were drawn into a highly competitive lineup that included Princeton, Penn, Cornell, and Navy. After a fast start by Princeton and Penn, the NU varsity maintained contact through the middle thousand, executing several powerful moves to stay in the mix. Despite the push, Northeastern finished third—just 1.2 seconds off the leader Princeton—earning a place in the afternoon petite final.
The Second Varsity Eight faced off against Harvard, Dartmouth, Columbia, and Navy in their morning heat. In another fiercely contested piece, Harvard and Dartmouth secured the top two spots to advance to the Grand Final. The Huskies rowed a strong race and finished third, qualifying for the afternoon's petite final.
Afternoon Finals See Gold and Strong Finishes for the Huskies
The finals session opened with fireworks for Northeastern as the Coxed Four took to the water for their Grand Final. Facing off against Harvard and two Holy Cross entries, the Huskies jumped out to an early lead and never looked back. With a commanding wire-to-wire performance, Northeastern captured gold and stood atop the podium in the opening event of the afternoon.
Varsity Heavyweight Four Grand Final:
1 - NORTHEASTERN 6:49.942
2 - HARVARD 6:57.176
3 - HOLY CROSS (A) 7:19.234
4 - HOLY CROSS (B) 7:30.295
The Third Varsity Eight returned to the water to take on Harvard, Princeton, Dartmouth, Penn, and Yale in the A Final. After a competitive first 1000 meters, the field began to stretch out in the second half. The Huskies fought hard to stay in contact and executed a strong sprint, closing on Penn in the final stretch. Northeastern finished 6th in a gritty Grand Final effort.
3rd Varsity Heavyweight Eight Grand Final:
1 - HARVARD 5:44.868
2 - PRINCETON 5:48.738
3 - YALE 5:51.776
4 - DARTMOUTH 5:53.420
5 - PENNSYLVANIA 5:58.056
6 - NORTHEASTERN 5:59.904
In the Second Varsity Eight Petite Final, the Huskies lined up against Brown, BU, Wisconsin, Cornell, and Columbia. Northeastern stormed off the line and led early, pushing out to a slight lead over Brown through the middle of the course. As the sprint unfolded, Brown surged, and the two boats traded seats all the way to the line. In a photo finish, Brown beat the Huskies by just 0.25 seconds. Northeastern placed second in the petite final, earning 8th overall in the conference.
2nd Varsity Heavyweight Eight Petite Final:
1 - BROWN 5:47.175
2 - NORTHEASTERN 5:47.421
3 - BU 5:53.111
4 - WISCONSIN 5:55.081
5 - CORNELL 5:56.593
6 - COLUMBIA 6:01.599
The Varsity Eight wrapped up the day in the Petite Final against Wisconsin, BU, Syracuse, Cornell, and Georgetown. With renewed focus, the Huskies delivered one of their best races of the season. After staying close in the opening 600 meters, Northeastern found their rhythm and surged into the lead at the halfway mark. With a strong second thousand and powerful sprint, the Huskies extended their advantage to take the win in the Petite Final, finishing 7th overall in the regatta.
Varsity Heavyweight Eight Petite Final:
1 - NORTHEASTERN 5:40.163
2 - SYRACUSE 5:42.895
3 - WISCONSIN 5:43.161
4 - BU 5:45.243
5 - CORNELL 5:46.919
6 - GEORGETOWN 5:50.173
In the overall Rowe Cup team points standings, Northeastern placed 8th among the Eastern Association of Rowing Colleges (EARC). With that finish, the Huskies secured an automatic qualifying bid to the IRA National Championship, to be held May 29 – June 1 in Camden, New Jersey.
Lineups
First Varsity
Cox: Alex Stamas
S: Pietro Brocca
7: Alexander Willott
6: Julian Leonhardt
5: Braden Porterfield
4: Kobe Miller
3: Ed Lopas
2: Jakub Kyncl
B: Brandon Mark
Second Varsity
Cox: Nick Walding
S: Luke Hickling
7: Krystof Janac
6: Aidan Murphy
5: Mark Kakoma
4: Michael Kourakos
3: Riley Putnam
2: Daniel Kelly
B: Ned Botherway
Third Varsity
Cox: Wilson Glass
S: Will Donovan
7: Immanuel Dorneich
6: Cameron MacGillivray
5: Adam Love
4: Giovanni Santaniello
3: Gabriel Pfister
2: Evan Albers
B: William Van Nice
Varsity Four
Cox: Lal Yatagan
4: Logan Smith
3: Kieran Holthues
2: Peter Cormack
1: William Van Nice
