Six of those rowers—Meyer, Newell, Moore, Trott, Dourdeville, and Nesel—rowed in last year’s 1V at some point during last season, but Newell says that despite the two boats’ similar personnel and success, the seasons have been very different.
“In terms of character, they’re very different,” Newell said. “I think everything is worlds different. The way we approach races: it’s been completely different.”
Harvard hopes the end result will be different too. Last year, the Crimson defeated the Tigers in the regular season only to fall to them at Sprints and later at IRAs, where Harvard earned bronze.
“The group hasn’t gotten caught up in the small details. We’ve always had the bigger picture in mind,” Meyer said. “It means nothing in the end if we don’t win. While it’s been a job well done so far, the mission has yet to be accomplished.”
“We have to keep building,” Dourdeville added. “Princeton will be faster, and we will be faster at Sprints...We have to keep our focus forwards.”
With the way the whole squad has been pushing each other, the 1V won’t have a choice but to keep working.
“I’ve been very impressed with the focus and the motivation of the team,” Dourdeville said. “I think Saturday was a culmination of that.”
—Staff writer Christina C. McClintock can be reached at ccmcclin@fas.harvard.edu.