GOLD RUSH: Members of the Princeton University men’s heavyweight second varsity eight celebrate after winning their grand final last Sunday at the Intercollegiate Rowing Association (IRA) National Championships on Lake Natoma in Gold River, Calif. The gold medal performance by the 2V helped Princeton finish second in total team points in the Ten Eyck Team Trophy standings, their best finish since placing first overall in 1998. (Photo by Row2K, provided courtesy of Princeton Athletics)

By Justin Feil

Greg Hughes had a moment of reflection when the Princeton University men’s second varsity eight crew won gold at the Intercollegiate Rowing Association (IRA) National Championships last Sunday.

It was the Tigers’ first IRA gold for a 2V boat since 1998, when Hughes was in his first year as a full-time coach.

“I vividly remember that 2V race,” said Hughes, who became the head coach of the Tiger lightweights in 2005 and has guided the Princeton heavyweight program since 2009. “And several of the guys that were in that 2V were guys that I rowed with when I was in college. So it really brought it home. It was very meaningful for me personally to see our team achieve that result.”

Hughes was equally enthused to see the gold from the 2V boat sandwiched around a pair of bronze medals at the competition on Lake Natoma in Gold River, Calif. The 3V boat opened the final day of IRAs with a third-place finish, and the 1V boat finished the day with a bronze to enable Princeton to finish second in total team points in the Ten Eyck Team Trophy standings, their best finish since placing first overallin 1998.

“That’s a testament to really strong work as a full team,” said Hughes. “And for our squad, that’s our primary goal every year. The only way you have a fast boat is to have all boats pushing each other. And so that was a really exciting thing for us to achieve. It’s the strongest result we’ve had since 1998 so very positive.”

A combination of success and setbacks over the last year paved the way to the Tigers’ runner-up finish behind overall champion Washington. Princeton placed fifth in the Ten Eyck standings a year ago.

“Learning from the lessons of last year, I think that was a big thing,” said Hughes. “I give the team a ton of credit to recognize that it wasn’t just bad luck last year, but rather there were identifiable things that we could work on and improve on that would make a noticeable difference in our performance. They took ownership of that result last year, stepped in to make changes, and I think that was a really positive beginning for it.”

None of the boats finished better than fourth a year ago. But there were a lot of young rowers in the 1V and 2V boats, and they came back with the experience and a determination

to improve.

“When you go to the

IRA your very first time there’s a lot of things happening quite quickly and there’s not a lot of time to correct and so I think those guys took those lessons seriously,” said Hughes. “That now-sophomore class really did an amazing job this year of engaging

in championship racing.”

It helped to have strong leadership. The seniors in the program this year were instrumental in helping the program hit some lofty goals. They came back determined to achieve at a high level in their final year with a plan to include everyone and develop the depth of the program.

“They set that goal,” said Hughes. “It’s been a theme that we’ve had with our team for the past few years, but they really drove it home in a way that was special. No man was left behind this year, and not just in terms of performance, but also with how the team handled things away from training and practice, like the way they manage their academics, the way they manage health — we didn’t have many guys dealing with missed training because of the illness or injury. And that really played a part this year.”

The Tigers had a lot in place, but still had to perform to wrap up an overall second place. Two weeks earlier, Princeton gained some momentum by winning the Rowe Cup at Eastern Sprints even with the 1V boat settling for a silver medal. IRAs began encouragingly when all their eight-man boats plus coxswains advanced to the grand finals and the Tigers entered with a measure

of confidence.

“The feeling was great,” said Hughes. “I think based on what we had seen in the heats and the semis, we knew we were in the mix for the championship and we knew there were, depending on the event, there were three or four other boats that were also in that mix. But we knew we were there. It wasn’t just, ‘hey, we’re coming into this race to see if we can get a medal.’ We went in looking for a shot at the championship, and that’s the way we raced each of those races.”

Things started in promising fashion on Sunday with a bronze from the 3V boat in its grand final. Princeton’s boat of coxswain Peter Litwin, Oscar Patton, Connor Bohlmann, Nate Fineman, Tom Pirenc, Alex Kawaja, David Albrechtskirchinger, Joe McCauley, and Jed Gallie took the lead early and were only overtaken by Washington (5:44.335) and Harvard (5:45.018) before taking third in 5:46.395 over the 2,000-meter course.

“It definitely sparked the energy for our team,” said Hughes. “We knew we were in the mix, but I think when you see it happening in the moment for the team, it definitely adds energy and excitement to the group as the next boats arrive and come in. And so very positive a way to start the day.”

With only one senior in the boat, the Tigers have plenty of rowers that gained championship experience coming back from the 3V boat. It’s likewise with the 2V boat. While three members of the boat are seniors, three of the members of the 2V boat are freshmen.

“I think it bodes well for the future,” said Hughes. “You’ve got guys that are able to perform at the championship level and be in

the mix for the win. There’s no guarantees, but we’ve

got a good foundation to work with.”

The 2V race only raised the level of excitement for the Tigers program. The eight led start to finish, but had to work hard to hold off Washington by barely one second, 5:42.557-5:43.612. Harvard took third in 5:54.273.

“I couldn’t be more proud,” said Hughes. “I think that group in particular has faced a couple moments of adversity during the regular season that could have changed their trajectory if they had allowed it and they didn’t and they doubled down. And it was a special moment to see that. And there’s three seniors in there that have just been such workhorses for our team. And I couldn’t think of a more incredible way for them to finish off their career at Princeton.”

The 2V boat had a tough head-to-head race against Harvard on the Charles River back in April, losing by almost four seconds. While disappointing, it seemed to spark a strong build to the end of the season for the team of cox Maile Organek, Patrick Shaw, Taeden Landa, Alex Perkins, Ed Nutt, Andrew Wilkinson, Ori Radwin, Aemon Morlan, and Andrew Nolan.

“It was very hard conditions to race in, but that was a tough moment for a crew in the season,” said Hughes. “And it took some work. I think what that race showed us was that we had the potential and the horsepower to be fast, but there were some things that we had to work on technically and develop a little bit better rhythm as a boat, and they really stepped into that work. I also give a lot of credit to Coach Sergio (Espinoza) who worked with them a lot more

one-on-one after that race to help them develop and refine their identity, which made a big difference

as well.”

The final step was the 1V race. In one of the closest grand finals ever, Princeton’s boat of cox Joseph Cutaia, Matt Cashman, Marcus Chute, Theo Bell, Trygve Bye Loken, Kian Aminian, Cy Rosenberg, Tristan Wenger and Dan Cashman took third place in 5:40.230. Washington won in 5:37.493 and California finished second in 5:38.552 while the Tigers held off Harvard (5:41.588).

“It wasn’t just winning that medal, it was the way that we raced it,” said Hughes. “That was truly one of the most incredible national championship finals I’ve ever seen. I’ve seen great battles between two crews duking it out. There were four boats across for 1,400 meters of that race and no one gave an inch. It was incredible firepower, a high caliber performance from every boat.”

The Tigers’ top boat came up short of the win, but not their effort. Princeton never did it better all year. They responded to the moment and to the pressure and left nothing on the table.

“To be in that situation and we let it out,” said Hughes. “Just to be able to go and set the tone of the race and drive it like that versus hanging in there and seeing what we might be able to sneak away with,

we went for the race and it was just truly thrilling to watch those guys do it. That was the best piece we’ve had on here. That was the fastest piece we’ve rowed. That’s the strongest execution. And great to see us go out on our best effort.”

It came just two weeks after the boat was disappointed not to win at Eastern Sprints. The Sprints race could have been a precursor to a tough ending to the season, but the boat rallied for an uplifting finish this time.

“The boat also had four sophomores in it, so again, a lot of lessons being learned,” said Hughes. “They’re racing up to the varsity level, a couple of them for the very first time, and they didn’t let that Sprint race pull them down. They learned from it and grew and they brought that to the IRA and they went in with a fierceness and an attitude that was really inspiring.”

Inspiring and history making. The leadership, the depth and the desire all showed as the Tigers put together their best overall IRA finish in 28 years.