HENLEY-ON-THAMES, England -- On Day Two of the Henley Royal Regatta, the Yale lightweights made a statement to the rowing world in an incredible effort against perennial heavyweight rowing powerhouse Washington. Taking place just before the lunch break, the much-anticipated matchup between two great rowing universities did not disappoint. Although the crews were of unequal sizes, the race turned out to be an instant Henley classic, with both crews never being separated by more than a length apart.
The constant headwind, which typically favors a heavyweight crew, was another challenge for the Bulldogs to face. At 12:20 GMT+1, Yale 'A' locked into the stakeboats against the University of Washington. Off the start, the crews were deadlock even. By the 600 meter mark, the Huskies pulled ahead by three quarters of a length, but the stingy Bulldogs refused to relinquish contact with the Washington stern deck. The Huskies pushed out to nearly a length lead by Fawley, but that would be their largest margin as Yale fought back in the closing half to pull within half a length by the end of the race.
"There were several points in the second half of the race where I thought we had enough momentum to push through, but credit to Washington for keeping their bow out front," commented Y150 Alumni Head Coach
Andy Card. "I couldn't be prouder of the way the guys raced today. They gave it everything they had and you can't ask for more than that as a coach. Full respect to Washington for their effort and we hope they do well going forward."
With the conclusion of their racing at Henley, the Yale lightweights' historic 2022 campaign comes to a close.
