NEW HAVEN, Conn. – There is a little added excitement for this year's Ivy League Women's Rowing Championship, set for Sunday on the Cooper River in Cherry Hill, N.J. After all, because of the pandemic, it's been nearly three years since all eight Ivy schools raced for a league championship. The morning heats begin at 8 a.m. followed by the afternoon finals starting at 2:20 p.m. The varsity eight grand final, which determines the Ivy League champion, is scheduled for 4:05 p.m.
ESPN+ will stream the finals live.
"We are excited to race in the Ivy Championship," said
Will Porter, the Friends of YWC Head Coach of the Bulldogs. "We expect high end racing and are excited to see where we stand."
Yale, which sits at No. 3, is one of four Ivy League schools ranked in the latest CRCA national poll. The Bulldogs are joined by Princeton (No. 4), Brown (No. 5) and Penn (No. 8). In addition, Radcliffe, Columbia and Cornell are all receiving votes.
"Last year people thought the Ivy League was done as a force in women's rowing, and this year we are the fastest League in the country with four teams ranked in the top 10," Porter said.
Yale captain
Claire Dirks is happy to be back racing and looking forward to the challenge.
"After two years without racing, it has been such a privilege to be back doing what we love, and we are always grateful to go down the course," she said. "The Ivy League is a strong conference, and we are excited to compete. We are focused on executing a clean, focused race across all boats."
In addition to crowning an Ivy champion, the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Championship will be determined. It is awarded to the team with the most points across the three NCAA boats – varsity eight, second varsity eight and the varsity four. In addition, there will be a team points champion for the best performance across all crews.
Yale is seeking its ninth Ivy championship. The Bulldogs last captured the title in 2010.
Yale won the overall team points championship in 2018.
It's been a very successful spring for the Bulldogs, who lost only one race among all crews. The second varsity eight, varsity four, second varsity four and third varsity eights are all undefeated.
Still, Porter does not believe his team has reached its maximum speed.
"We are still working as a team to find our top gear. It's coming," he said. "The challenge of getting eight athletes and a coxswain in perfect synchronization, peaking mentally and physically has always been remarkable. We love it."
