From Friday to Sunday, the crew team raced at the 2016 IRA National Championships on Mercer Lake in West Windsor, New Jersey. It was the first time since 2008 the team competed at the event.
Friday morning Temple’s varsity 8, which took the bronze at coach Gavin White’s final Dad Vail Regatta on May 14, started with a time of 6:26.43 to finish sixth in their heat. The Owls improved by roughly 13 seconds in the repechage, finishing in fourth in a time of 6:13.44.
In varsity 4 racing, the Owls opened the day with a fifth place finish, recording a time of 6:56.72. Temple broke away from both Drexel and Fairfield University. The Owls beat out the Milwaukee School of Engineering and the University of Oklahoma in the repechage, finishing in 7:01.78 and taking the fourth spot.
The lightweight 4 had one race and took fifth in its heat with a time of 6:51.47.
On day two of the events, Temple raced in a pair of semifinals.
Temple’s varsity 8 seized its best time of the weekend event with a time of 5:56.60, which placed the boat fifth in its semifinal—four seconds ahead of Oklahoma.
The varsity 4 also placed fifth in its semifinal, finishing up the day with a time of 6:47.42.
On Sunday, Temple concluded its 2015-16 season with four finals races on the final day of the IRA National Championships. The freshman 8 competed in the grand finals, the lightweight 4 competed in the petite finals, and the varsity 8 and varsity 4 competed in lower-level finals.
The members of the Owls’ freshman 8 received their first action of the weekend on Sunday, posting a time of 6:24.1 which landed them in sixth place in the grand final. In the petite final, the lightweight four finished fourth with a time of 7:04.16.
In varsity 4 racing, Temple’s boat had its best finish of the weekend, placing third in the fourth-level final ahead of Yale University, Milwaukee and Drexel. The Owls finished the race in 6:59.150.
The Temple varsity 8 finished sixth in the fourth-level final, recording a time of 6:20.24.
LeVar C. Mitchell can be reached at tuf92733@temple.edu
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