A weekend of races on the Charles River in Boston started out rough but ended with success for the women's crew team, which left Beantown with a handful of first-place finishes.
As the team began competition on Saturday, Mother Nature was relentless, providing strong winds, heavy rain, and a temperature of 40 degrees. Due to the poor conditions, all the races became head-to-head contests rowed on the powerhouse stretch of the river.
The Novice 8 races started the day. The Bulls first raced the Boston College Eagles and soared to a victory in 5:21.4, more than 20 seconds faster than their opponents. UB wasn't as successful in its second race against Dartmouth, rowing in second to the Big Green's 5:25.7 turning in its own time of 5:37.5.
While the Novice 8 team found success in their first race by more than 20 seconds, Buffalo's Varsity 8 racers were unable to catch either team they faced, losing cumulatively by more than 30 seconds. The Bulls first went head-to-head with Boston College and fell to the Eagles by 14 seconds. The result of their second race against Northeastern wasn't any better, falling to the Huskies by 16 seconds.
UB's Second Varsity 8 found the same results as the Varsity 8, falling to both Boston College and Dartmouth. The Bulls lost by 10 seconds to the Eagles and cut the losing margin in half against the Big Green.
For Saturday's last race, the UB Lightweight 8 faced two teams from MIT, one consisting of freshman lightweights and the other comprised of varsity and novice lightweights. Buffalo posted victories in both races but earned the victories by very different time margins.
Against MIT's freshman lightweight team, the Bulls squeaked by to victory with a time just 1.15 seconds faster than the opposing freshman squad. Buffalo was much more successful against the combined MIT team, winning by more than 45 seconds.
Mother Nature showed her gentler side on Sunday, allowing for good water conditions, a crosswind, and three UB first place finishes.
Coming back from a pair of losses, Buffalo's second Varsity 8 team defeated Rhode Island in a head-to-head race. The Bulls crossed the finish line in 7:46.32 - just about seven seconds faster than Rhode Island's time of 7:53.16.
UB's Novice 8 continued the second day success of the Bulls, finishing first over both Rhode Island and MIT. It was smooth sailing to the finish line for the Buffalo team, which completed the race in 7:49.10, well before Rhode Island's 8:04.97 and MIT's 8:21.48.
The Lightweight 8 had similar success, finishing first in front of two novice teams from Harvard. The Bulls finished in 8:06.53, while the Crimson's A and B teams came in at 8:16.09 and 9:32.12, respectively.
While UB's counterparts finished in the top slot, the Varsity 8 race was lost to Rhode Island. UB came in at 7:24.58 while Rhode Island rowed in at 7:11.84. MIT placed third with a time of 7:32.01.
Next on the team's schedule is a home meet Saturday. The Bulls will face Bucknell and Colgate on the Tonawanda Creek at Veterans Canal Park in Amherst.
Photo: Courtesy of Matthew Messina, from the RMBERS' Instagram page
