Beaver Freshman Finish 5th as IRAs Conclude
CAMDEN, N.J. – The Oregon State men’s rowing team finished the IRA Championships by recording one top 10 finish and placing all crews in the top 15 of their divisions on the Cooper River in Camden, N.J. on Saturday, June 7.
The Oregon State Varsity 8+ crew, coming off a victory in the 'C' Semifinal on Friday, looked to wrap up the top spot in the Third Level Final on Saturday.
The No. 14 Beavers faced much of the same competition as Friday, with the race becoming a three-way battle between OSU, No. 13 Syracuse, and No. 20 Dartmouth. The Beavers fell behind at the start, they picked it back up over the next 1000 meters and put themselves a boat-length behind Syracuse for first. Despite a strong closing sprint, the Beavers could not overcome the deficit, finishing just 0.193 seconds behind the Orange.
“We were hanging back in the start and we gave a little too much in the middle piece,” head coach Steve Todd said. “But we followed that with an outstanding sprint. We were farther down on Syracuse than yesterday and were a whole length behind with 500-meters left. Even though we could not overtake them in the end and this crew has a lot to be proud of.”
The second place finish in the Third Level Finals give the Beavers V8+ crew a 14th place finish among all V8+ crews at the IRAs.
The Beavers’ Freshman 4+ sought to wrap up a successful weekend in its first competition with a successful run in the F4+ Grand Finals. From the start it was clear that the top three crews in the race came from Washington, California and Wisconsin. Despite another strong showing from the F4+, which cut its time substantially for the second consecutive day, the Beavers found themselves battling for fourth with a crew from Rutgers. Although the Beavers' rookies pushed hard in the final 500 meters, they were unable to overcome Rutgers and settled for a fifth place finish in the F4+ division.
“The Freshman 4+ raced pretty well, they had a good bulk of the race but couldn’t overcome a slow start,” Todd said. “But it was a good weekend for these guys and good way for them to end their season.”
The Junior Varsity 8+ went into Saturday’s races seeking a top 10 finish in the JV8+ division. Following a tough race in Friday’s Semifinals, the Beavers cut their time by over 10-seconds in Saturday’s race. As the competition went on, Oregon State was able to pull away from the sixth place Princeton crew. The Beavers and the crew from Harvard raced neck-and-neck for the fourth place finish. When it came to the finish line however, the Orange and Black were 0.332 seconds off.
“The Junior Varsity fought hard,” Todd said. “They had a good battle going with the Harvard crew the whole time and were able to hang with the top three crews for most of the race. They couldn’t come up with it in the end but it was a good effort by those guys.”
The fifth place finish in the Petite Finals give the Beavers’ JV8+ an 11th place finish at the IRA Championships.
“Getting to come with three boats and two Eights for the first time in three years was a great thing for this program,” Todd said of the weekend. “The seniors did a good job leading the group and came through when we needed them. Having our JV crews finish ahead of a lot of good crews shows us something for the future. The whole program has a lot to be proud of after this weekend.”
Results Junior Varsity 8+ Petite Final Freshman 4+ Grand Final
Finals
Varsity 8+ 3rd Level Final
1. Syracuse 5:44.808
2. Oregon State 5:45.001
3. Dartmouth 5:49.815
4. Boston 5:50.722
5. Michigan 5:51.960
6. Holy Cross 6:01.819
1. Cornell 5:46.716
2. Northeastern 5:50.142
3. Boston 5:50.164
4. Harvard 5:53.451
5. Oregon State 5:53.783
6. Princeton 6:04.523
1. Washington 6:25.931
2. California 6:30.322
3. Wisconsin 6:36.356
4. Rutgers 6:39.179
5. Oregon State 6:40.199
6. Drexel 6:48.981
