The men's crew team traveled to Lake Quinsigamond in Worcester, Mass. this Sunday to take on the University of Vermont, Worcester Polytechnic Institute and Skidmore College. The first varsity boat lost to WPI and Vermont, but beat Skidmore in a race that was emblematic of the weekend.
After getting off to a rough start, the Jumbos were unable to control the boat through the choppy conditions and did not row to their full potential, according to associate head coach Anna Lindgren-Streicher.
"I think across all the boats the rowers felt like the race was not representative of what they are capable of," she said. "What we are practicing for and aiming for is for all the boats to string together a full race that shows their capabilities and shows the work they have put in."
WPI pulled out a strong lead early on in the first varsity race, and cruised to the finish in a time of 6:05., nine seconds ahead of second-place finisher Vermont. Tufts finished a little over a boat length behind Vermont in a time of 6:19.6 and over 10 seconds ahead of Skidmore.
The team expected to face strong competition from WPI, but hoped to stay even or pull ahead of Vermont. But the Jumbos were at a disadvantage, as many rowers did not understand or hear the starting commands. According to senior captain Kyle Flood, he did not hear the start of the race called, and the team lost a boat length off the start.
"We lost it from the start and never got it back," Flood said. "We have to push ourselves out of our comfort zones, even if we have a few off strokes."
Lindgren-Streicher stressed that no matter the conditions of the start, the crew has to pull it back together quickly and concentrate on the race.
"There were some problems with the start, not all the boats knew that they had gone to the quick-start format," she said. "In any case, it doesn't have to set you back or make or break the race as long as you handle it well."
Making the deficit up proved to be a challenge for the Jumbos as they faced the windy conditions on Lake Quinsigamond. A steady tailwind blew throughout the race and created chop on the more open waters. The crew is used to rowing on the sheltered Malden River, which is calm most days.
The second and third varsity eights also faced problems with the wind and had trouble executing their race plans. The second varsity eight finished a distant third behind WPI and Vermont, who pulled ahead early in the race. The third varsity eight stuck it out behind Vermont, finishing six seconds behind the Catamounts but almost 25 seconds behind WPI.
Lindgren-Streicher was glad her rowers were exposed to the rough conditions at this point in the season, however, as the final events of the spring will be held on the same lake.
"I think that the races gave us a good idea of the work that we need to do over the next two weeks before New England [Rowing Championships]," Lindgren-Streicher said. "All three boats walked away with a clear idea of what they need to work on and improve."
The team is looking forward to the next two weeks of practice to hone their strategies and execution before the New England Rowing Championships on May 4 and the ECAC National Invite Championships on May 12.
First, however, the team turns to their last home race of the season against Wentworth this coming Saturday. Tufts raced Wentworth in their first home meet of the season as well and came away with a confidence booster after strong finishes by all boats.
