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Volume CXXXI, Number 24 |
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Crews shine at NE 4s
ELIZABETH GOTT
STAFF WRITER
Three Bowdoin crews claimed gold medals and two others medalled
in a strong showing at the New England Fours Championships last weekend.
Bowdoin has always done well at these championships, held in Lowell, Massachusetts.
In recent years, Bear crews have won nearly every event they entered and
claimed the overall team points trophy in 2000 and 2001.
In the first golden race of the afternoon, the novice women
powered past crews from Amherst and Middlebury. Stroke Allie Craig '04
led them in a clean and impressive race, claiming a sizeable lead before
reaching the halfway point of the 2000-meter course.
That boat's record is virtually unblemished for the spring
season. The girls are looking forward to the national Dad Vail Regatta,
held May 10-12 in Philadelphia.
As the varsity women launched after the novices' win, they
too were hungry for victory. Unchallenged in their qualifying heat, coxswain
Katie Smith '03 knew her girls would have to be ambitious, battling with
a strong Amherst boat in the finals.
The Amherst and Bowdoin women came down the course jockeying
for the lead. Powering through the middle segment of the race, amidst
enthusiastic cheers from many Bowdoin parents, Bowdoin's women pulled
ahead of Amherst by a few strokes. Smith likes to call for this stealthy,
powerful run at the 1000-meter mark, leaving other crews bewildered at
their sudden burst of energy. Keeping their composure with the Amherst
boat in full view, the women claimed a hard-earned victory.
Sprint racing lived up to its name in the second varsity
men's final, with two Bowdoin boats rounding out the six competitors.
As they approached the halfway point, the boats-stroked by sophomores
Chad Pelton and Justin Clarke-found themselves in an intense battle with
New York Maritime.
With just 250 meters to go, the NY crew pulled slightly ahead. Coxswain
Juleah Swanson '04 called for her men to sprint, and Pelton's crew pushed
its stroke rate to the maximum in hopes of catching the leaders.
In the end, Pelton's boat finished a close second, with
Clarke's men just two seconds behind in third place. Though Birney was
hoping for a 1-2 finish in this men's event, he was proud of his rowers
for battling through to the finish line. "These two crews are racing
neck and neck and keep pushing each other to better performances,"
he said. "A coach couldn't ask for anything better."
The first varsity men's race featured just as much excitement.
Senior Will LoVerme stroked his boat to the gold medal, easily defeating
crews from NY Maritime and Vermont.
The win marked an impressive run for LoVerme, who has won
a gold medal in each of his yearly trips to the NE Fours Championship.
The boat, consisting of LoVerme, Tom Scifres '03, Gordon Clark '03, and
Tyler Lange '03, tossed coxswain Ben Needham '05 into the river in a traditional
display of victory after the race.
The Bowdoin Navy will compete tomorrow in Worcester, Massachusetts,
at the New England Championships. The crew is also looking forward to
the Dad Vail Regatta, which draws the top teams from all over the U.S.
"Three golds, a silver, and a bronze [last weekend] is an excellent tally in a competitive regional regatta," Birney said. "I can't wait to see what these kids can do at the national level in Philly."