Finishing strong at the Rivanna Romp, host Virginia placed first in both the varsity eight and novice eight races, ending a successful fall season with bright hope for the spring.
"The team did awesome overall and I'm really excited that every boat that raced did really well," senior Sara Lippa said. "I don't think we could have asked for a much better performance from any of our boats."
Despite cold, rainy weather, the only hitch was a timing error that caused a restart in the varsity eight competition. However, the 12 teams, including Clemson, Wisconsin and Tennessee, good-naturedly re-rowed the race, risking slower times.
"We thought the only fair thing to do was to re-row, so everybody rallied and talked to their athletes and then everybody went back out and rowed again," Virginia coach Kevin Sauer said. "It's like running a cross-country race and then an hour and a half later going back out and doing it again. I was just really impressed with how all our boats handled it."
The Cavaliers "A" boat won the varsity eight race in a time of 13:12.43, soundly defeating the competition. Virginia was followed by Ohio State in 13:27.05; Tennessee, 13:29.57; and Minnesota, 13:44.86. Out of the 29 boats that competed in the varsity eight race, the Cavaliers also had boats finish eighth and 20th.
"The weather wasn't really a factor," Lippa said. "Our coxswains did a really good job of having us move to keep us warm."
Virginia's novice eight also placed first in their race, coming in with a time of 14:03.04. Finishing behind them was Clemson, 15:05.08; Georgetown, 15:24.25; and Tennessee, 15:25.82. Out of the eight boats in the race, the Cavaliers also placed fifth.
While only racing in three regattas, Virginia had a strong and successful fall season. Opening with the Head of the Charles regatta in Boston, the varsity eight team placed fourth in the championship eight race, comprised of 46 crews. Crossing the finish line precariously close to Princeton, the defending national champions, the Cavaliers finished with a time of 16:15.138. In the championship four competition, Virginia came in seventh in a time of 18:32.469 out of 21 crews.
Traveling to Princeton, Virginia dominated in the Princeton Chase. Despite several races being cancelled because of poor weather, the Cavaliers defeated Princeton -- the regatta host and defending national champions -- on their home course on Lake Carnegie.
"Winning the Princeton chase on their home water is in some ways the most significant because it's a tough place to win," Sauer said. "The Princeton Chase was special."
Virginia's "A" boat finished the open eight competition in 15:50.9, in front of Yale (16:07.6) and Princeton (16:08.1). The Cavalier "C" crew finished fourth in a time of 16:27.7. Out of the 54 crews that competed, Virginia also finished 21st, 23rd and 24th.
"I had looked over the past 12 falls and this is the best fall we've ever had," Sauer said. "To win the Princeton Chase and the Rivanna Romp -- it was awesome."
With a successful season behind them, the Cavaliers look to the spring season with confidence. As the fall season is generally a warm-up for the highly competitive spring season, Virginia's fall concludes with a promising future.
"You can't expect anything," Lippa said. "I think we have met all possible goals for the fall."
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