Stranger Flings have happened? If that's true, the men's heavyweight crew team wouldn't know. Unlike the rest of the University of Pennsylvania and the thousands of other visitors swarming Locust Walk, for the Penn rowers it was back to business. And business meant the Blackwell Cup on Harlem River Saturday versus Columbia and Yale. The Blackwell Cup had been in the hands of Penn since 1986, but Saturday that all changed. The Quakers' varsity and junior varsity boats were edged out by the Elis, who captured the Cup. If it was any consolation, the varsity boat lost by less than four seconds, while the JV came up just two seconds short. On a brighter note for Penn, the first freshman, third varsity and second freshman fours cruised to victory. "You've got to tip your hat to Yale. They did a great job," coach Stan Bergman said. "We have to just keep on working and training hard and not worry about what the past brought. We will learn from our challenges and racing." Since the Quakers are loaded with depth, Bergman has had trouble finding the right fit for his varsity and junior varsity boats. For this race he made some changes, and more switches may be in order for next week. "We got a little more speed out of both boats with the changes," Bergman said. "We're just going to continue to work hard and try to improve. Their attitude is still real good and strong." Penn has had an excellent history in crew racing. It is perennially at the top of the country. So it may be frustrating for the Quakers to have run up against so much tough opposition this year, but the season is far from over and Bergman is not one to be pessimistic. His words may prove to be rather inspirational for this squad. "I'm always optimistic," Bergman said. "As long as you have a chance to race, you have a chance to win. As soon as you stop trying, you end up being a loser. We are going to keep battling. They're working hard and that's all that you can ask out of your athletes. We're doing the best we can." · If it's in the game, it's in the game. Don't expect Sega to come out with a crew game anytime soon, but if the Penn women's team keeps up its stellar performances, somebody will probably take notice. Coming in as a definite underdog to Cornell, the Quakers stunned the Big Red and demolished Rutgers on their way to collecting their first win ever in the Class of '89 Plate. Penn's first novice, second novice, JV and third varsity boats won their races handily, while the varsity boat came up eight-tenths of a second short to Cornell. The Penn varsity boat put on a mad rush at the end to pick up major ground and would have caught the Big Red boat had the race gone on any further. "Everybody's really pleased with the result," coach Carol Bower said. "The freshmen are starting to evolve into a really good group." The freshmen were ranked in the top four in the country prior to the race and they should move up with their impressive victory. However, it is the JV boat that expects to move up most in the rankings. Seeded ninth in the country, it surprised the top-ranked boat from Cornell. "The tornado that came through must have swept us up," Bower said. "This freshmen group was just waiting to blossom. The only letdown was getting so close to winning the varsity race, but it always seems to be, 'You could have done this or you could have done that.' We're very happy." The Quakers can expect some time off now before their schedule becomes brutally competitive. Penn hasn't had any time off since its trip to San Diego, and Bower feels the rowers may need some time to focus on some technical work before the Eastern Sprints May 8. All along the main goal of this team has been to medal at the Sprints, and now that is looking like a strong possibility. · The Harlem River isn't known as one of the world's most sanitary bodies of water. Freshman Felix Lang learned that out first hand. "The water got really rough," coach Bruce Konopka said. "I don't think Felix expected to be thrown in the Harlem." In the Dodge Cup Saturday, the Quakers fell at the hands of a strong Yale team. Penn wasn't even close to the Elis in the varsity, second varsity and first freshman races, but that doesn't match the disaster in the second freshman race. During the race, Quaker strokeman Lang was ejected from the boat and Penn was unable to finish the race. Yale came into the race aiming to pace itself at a considerably higher stroke rate than the Quakers. Penn settled into a 35-strokes-per-minute groove, while the Elis didn't go below 39 strokes per minute all race. "We had a hard going," Konopka said. "Yale was rowing a lot higher than us. I knew Yale was planning to row like that, but it's a difference in coaching strategies."
The Daily Pennsylvanian is an independent, student-run newspaper. Please consider making a donation to support the coverage that shapes the University. Your generosity ensures a future of strong journalism at Penn.
DonatePlease note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.
