George Washington University
GW Invitational
Navy Captures Point Trophy at 22nd GW Invitational Regatta
4/11/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Rowing
April 11, 2009
WASHINGTON, DC -- The U.S. Naval Academy amassed 230 points to win the Gilbert H. Hood, Jr. Point Trophy at the 22nd George Washington Invitational Regatta, Friday and Saturday, on the Potomac River. It marked the 11th time the Midshipmen have won the point trophy.
Navy easily outscored runner-up Columbia (122 pts.). Cornell was third with 117 points, four more than Georgetown (113). The host Colonials were sixth with 65 points. The event is held each April in conjunction with the National Cherry Blossom Festival. Navy's men scored 123 points to capture the Oliver T. Carr Bowl awarded to the team with the highest men's point total. Columbia's women won the Howard W. Wilkins Bowl for accumulating the highest women's team point total.
A steady rain poured throughout Saturday's morning races before giving way to intermittent sun and clouds in the afternoon with temperatures in the low 50s. A mild tailwind and tailcurrent made for fast racing conditions in the afternoon.
The GW men's varsity eight defeated Holy Cross by 8.1 seconds Saturday morning while the Colonials' women's varsity eight narrowly lost to MIT by one second earlier Saturday. In the final race of the Regatta on Saturday afternoon, Navy's men's varsity eight completed the 2,000-meter course in 5:30.8 to edge the Colonials by less than a second. Navy's time was the 10th fastest men's varsity eight time in the history of the event.
GW's first-year men's rowers enjoyed multiple victories in the two-day event. Friday, the men's second freshman eight blasted Georgetown by nearly 19 seconds and won it's three-team race over Navy and Georgetown in 6:05.2 on Saturday while the GW men's freshman eight defeated Holy Cross by more than 15 seconds Saturday.
The next race for the GW men will be Sunday, April 26, when they take on Georgetown in "The Duel" on the Potomac. Next up for the GW women is the Atlantic 10 Conference Women's Rowing Championships on Saturday, April 18, on the Cooper River in Pennsauken, NJ.
Final Team Point Standings
1- U.S. Naval Academy 230
2- Columbia 122
3- Cornell 117
4- Georgetown 113
5- Saint Joseph's 80
6- George Washington 65
7- Gonzaga 51
8- Colgate 27
9- California 18
T-10- MIT 15
T-10- Holy Cross 15
12- Delaware 0
