The Drexel University crew was spread out across the country and gave strong performances at three different tournaments this past weekend.
Drexel’s varsity eight men’s teams competed April 2 and April 3 in the San Diego Crew Classic and Drexel’s varsity four men’s teams competed April 3 at the Occoquan Sprints in Fairfax, Virginia. The varsity eight and varsity four women’s teams competed April 2 in the Philly Invite and April in the Occoquan Sprints.
The Dragon’s varsity eight squad finished in third place at the grand final of the San Diego Crew Classic on April 3. Their performance was very impressive considering the teams they finished ahead of, which included No. 15 Stanford, No. 16 Oregon State and No. 20 Michigan.
The varsity eight men’s boat also posted a solid time during its heat on April 2. Drexel’s varsity eight men’s boat finished with a 6:08.227 on Saturday and finished behind Harvard, the eventual tournament champions, for second place on the day.
The second varsity eight men’s boat came in sixth overall in the bracket of the San Diego Crew Classic, posting a 6:33.381 in their grand final on Sunday.
On the opposite coast, the women’s team found success in several races.
The varsity four and second varsity eight women’s teams each won races against Bucknell University and Duquesne University Saturday at the Philly Invite. The varsity eight women’s team also defeated Bucknell in their matchup.
Their victories on Saturday marked just the beginning of the success that the women’s team experienced last weekend.
Drexel’s second varsity eight women’s boat finished in first place in both their heat and grand final at the Occoquan Sprints last Sunday. The first varsity eight women’s team was also very impressive. After a first place finish in their heat, the varsity eight women’s team came in second place in their grand final, finishing less than three minutes behind North Carolina University.
The varsity eight women’s team was not the only Dragon’s squad to come in second place behind the a Tarheels boat. Drexel’s varsity four women’s team posted a 5:17.61 in their grand final on Saturday and finished just under five minutes behind North Carolina.
Next up on the schedule for the Dragons is the George Washington Invitational for the men’s team on April 8 and the Knecht Cup for the women on April 9.