OPEN SEASON: Members of the Princeton University women’s open crew celebrate after the Tigers won the title at the inaugural Ivy League Sprints last Sunday at Cooper River in Cherry Hill. The Tigers piled up 76 points to edge runner-up Radcliffe by three points at the regatta with Yale taking third and Cornell finishing fourth. (Photo Courtesy of Ryan Samson/The Ivy League)

When Princeton University women’s open crew head coach Lori Dauphiny  looks back on the inaugural Ivy League Sprints, one image, in particular, will come to her mind.

“Every kid from Princeton who competed came away with a medal,” said Dauphiny, reflecting on the event which was held last Sunday at Cooper River in Cherry Hill. “That is really cool; that doesn’t happen too often.”

The Tigers piled up 76 points to edge runner-up Radcliffe by three points at the regatta with Yale taking third and Cornell finishing fourth.

Dauphiny, though, would have liked to see her varsity 8 rowers with gold draped around their necks rather than the bronze they earned from coming in third behind winner Radcliffe and second place Cornell.

“Overall I thought they rowed a good race but we were disappointed,” said Dauphiny, whose top boat clocked a time of 6:22.06 over the 2,000-meter course with Radcliffe at 6:17.74 and Cornell at 6:20.53. “We thought we had a possibility of winning the race and we fell short.”

While the Tiger varsity 8 entered the competition with a 7-0 record in Ivy regular season races, Dauphiny knew it wasn’t a powerhouse.

“This boat is not the most consistent; we had a solid regular season,” said Dauphiny. “We went undefeated in the Ivy League but we lost some races outside of the conference. The team know its strengths and weaknesses; it takes time to develop.”

In Sunday’s racing, the top boat showed it can address weaknesses on the fly.

“At Ivy sprints, they were a little frenzied in the heat; it was not our best race,” recalled Dauphiny.

“We talked about it and made changes in our cadence for the final and we executed. We know they are responsive; they are working on skills and racing better.”

The Princeton second varsity 8 displayed its racing prowess, winning its grand final by overcoming Brown down the stretch.

“The second varsity also had a very good regular season; it is a boat that tends to come from behind,” said Dauphiny, whose second boat clocked a winning time of 6:27.95 with the Bears coming in at 6:31.21.

“They are slower to get going; they gain speed and finish strong and that is what they did on Sunday. They got a better start than usual. They were trailing Brown for much of the race but went through them.”

Putting the final touches on an undefeated season, the third varsity produced a dominating effort, covering the course in 6:38.49, more than 10 seconds ahead of runner up Brown.

“They got off to a good start,” said Dauphiny. “If a race like that can be comfortable, they had it with open water at the end.”

The varsity four wasn’t comfortable with its second place finish as it got nipped by Radcliffe by just over two seconds.

“The boat felt it had an opportunity to win so there was some disappointment,” said Dauphiny. “They rowed a good race but fell short.”

In Dauphiny’s view, winning the team title says good things about the overall strength of the program.

“It should be a help for the future, it shows development and depth,” said Dauphiny.

With the NCAA Championships being held at nearby Mercer Lake from May 25-27, Dauphiny is hoping the combination of proximity and depth will help Princeton be a contender.

“It is definitely not a disadvantage; it’s wonderful to be close to home during final exams and not be traveling,” said Dauphiny, noting that the competition utilizes a team format involving the varsity 8, second varsity 8, and the varsity 4.

“We are excited to have another chance. It is nice that the whole team is recognized; maybe we have a shot at doing better in the team standings.”