Blue Crew Combines to Take Third at New England Championships

WORCESTER, Mass. -- 2015 New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) champion Wellesley College crew took third place in the overall points trophy standings on Saturday at the 2015 New England Rowing Championships (NERC) on Lake Quinsigamond. The result is the best NERC result in school history.

Four Blue crews advanced to grand finals, led by a third place finish from Wellesley's Varsity Eight (V8). The Blue took third in the V8 Grand Final with a time of 7:01.310, trailing first place Bates (6:57.656) and Williams (6:57.791). Wellesley advanced to the grand final after winning its preliminary round heat with a time of 6:53.483, crossing the line ahead of Williams (6:54.612), as the Ephs opened in the same heat. 

 Wellesley's Second Varsity Eight (2V8) recorded one of two second place finishes for the Blue, taking silver in the 2V8 Grand Final. Wellesley trailed only first place Bates (7:07.955) with a time of 7:14.499. The Novice Eight also took silver in the Novice Grand Final, finishing behind Williams' time of 7:22.234 with a mark of 7:30.315. The Blue Novice eight recorded a victory in the preliminary rounds, winning Heat 1 with a time of 7:46.955.

In the third varsity eight races, Wellesley's crew advanced to the grand final with a time of 7:51.818, trailing Wesleyan (7:24.049) and Trinity (7:28.485) in the opening heat. The Blue Third Varsity Eight then took fifth in the grand final with a time of 7:46.109. Bates won the event with a time of 7:19.489. 

Wellesley Crew will continue the spring season next weekend at the ECAC National Invitational on Lake Quinsigamond. The race is Wellesley's final event before the 2015 NCAA Championships, May 29th and 30th at the Sacramento State Aquatic Center in Gold River, Calif.