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The Harvard-Radcliffe lightweight crew delivered a dominant performance in the Women’s Lightweight 8+ race before a cheering home crowd on the docks of Weld Boathouse.

Starting from bow position three, behind both Boston University and Princeton, Harvard-Radcliffe’s lightweight varsity boat completed the course with a rapid winning time of 16:01.004.

The host’s ‘B’ boat ousted MIT and Sacred Heart University’s ‘A’ boats in the same race, but fell to Princeton, Georgetown, the University of Wisconsin, and Boston University.

Prior to the 8+ race, Harvard-Radcliffe’s lightweight boat placed tenth in the 4+ with a finish of 19:23.740, falling behind the University of Wisconsin by a margin of about 20 seconds.

The 8+ race looked as if it would be controlled by Princeton, who held the lead through the markers of Riverside, Weld Boathouse, and the Cambridge Boat Club. However, the Black and White’s varsity boat excelled in the final stretch by completing the sprint towards the finish line in 2:48:839, nabbing first-place.

As the boats flew past Riverside Boat Club, the close three-second difference between the Tigers’ 3:36.633 time and Harvard-Radcliffe’s 3:39.793 time immediately suggested that the race would be a battle between the two Ivy League foes.

Princeton remained ahead as the boats cleared the congested near-ninety degree turn in front of Weeks Bridge. As the boats flew past Radcliffe’s Weld Boathouse, the Black and White’s fans erupted into loud cheers for its crew. The home team had narrowed the gap to just over two seconds.

Directed by sophomore coxswain Ella Sheth, the Harvard-Radcliffe crew outhustled Princeton in the stretch between Weld and the Cambridge Boat Club, which started to close its deficit.

The crew, captained by junior Rikke Nielsen in the bow seat, senior Sisira Holbrook in the third seat, and senior Kristine Schwartz in the fourth seat, cranked through the finish line, dominating the Tigers by nine whole seconds in the final stretch.

Harvard-Radcliffe’s performance in the last leg of the race spurred the team to a successful six-second victory over Princeton and a win at the historic Head of the Charles Regatta.

During the race, Sheth also deftly managed to guide the team around Boston University’s boat. The team’s captains acknowledged that passing a boat has its challenges, but that the whole crew trusted Sheth to steer them to success.

“We had full confidence in Ella, our coxswain,” Holbrook said. “It just feels incredible to watch the boat come into view and then pass them one seat at a time and open up the margins on them.”

“You get so much energy from seeing the other boat and walking through them,” added Nielsen.

Through the difficult course, the Black and White still managed to navigate its way on the Charles to bring home a win.

“The wind was not always in our favor, but it was exciting to cross the finish line and know that we had a chance,” Schwartz said as she described her teams’ post-race sentiments.

Since the race is not a head-to-head contest, the Harvard-Radcliffe was forced to wait for the results in anticipation after powering through the finish line. Once awarded, the victory resonated all around, serving as notable achievement for the team and lots of promise for a strong spring season ahead.

“We had no idea where we all were, and we had no idea we were beating Princeton,” Nielsen said. “So when we heard the final result, we were very excited.”

“We just couldn’t ask for anything better,” said Schwartz.

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“We’re really proud of our team, that's the bottom line.” Holbrook added.

Heavyweights Show Massive Improvement

The Harvard-Radcliffe heavyweight crew showed substantial improvement this year after a disappointing 13th place finish in 2024. The Radcliffe ‘A’ boat finished in 7th place overall and improved on last year’s time by roughly 12 seconds. The ‘B’ boat moved up eight spots from its 2024 finish and claimed 13th.

“It was a great weekend across the board,” said third-year head coach Claire Ochal. “I’m just super, over the moon proud.”

The ‘A’ boat came out fast and logged the fifth fastest split on the first mile. The split scored third amongst teams in the “College - Championship” subdivision of the race, trailing Brown and Princeton by less than 0.3 seconds.

Quick first mile splits usually lead to slow downs in the second mile, but the Radcliffe rowers proved that adage false. The ‘A’ boat blistered for the second fastest second split in the field and trailed only the US Training Center team that won both the race and each individual split.

The ‘B’ boat took a more consistent approach to the race and carded steadier splits throughout the course.

Boat ‘A’ entered the final full mile in third place while boat ‘B’ entered in 13th. Energy exerted in the early parts of the race finally caught up with the ‘A’ boat as a slower split dropped the team to its finish at 7th while the ‘B’ boat clung to its 13th place finish.

The traditional rowing season is in the spring, so this standalone race provides an opportunity for teams to see where they stand.

“It’s a chance to show early in the year, because our main season is in the spring, see where we’re at. See what level we’ve come back at after the summer,” said senior Jenna Kempster-Taylor. “We’re really happy with our results.”

The results showcased promise for the heavyweight team. The ‘A’ boat finished third in the “College - Championship” subdivision that is composed of teams they will row against during the regular season. This is a major improvement from a seventh place finish in the division last year.

The ‘B’ boat also made a subdivisional improvement, jumping from fifth to second in the “Junior Varsity” division.

The team plans to use the information gained from this race to power its training for the remainder of fall and winter.

“Tuesday morning we go back to training,” said Kempster-Taylor. “Making use of every single day and every single session.”

Correction: October 20, 2025

A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that junior Rikke Nielsen rowed in the stroke seat. In fact, Nielsen rowed in the bow seat.

—Staff writer Isabel C. Smail can be reached at isabel.smail@thecrimson.com.

—Staff writer Reed M. Trimble can be reached at reed.trimble@thecrimson.com.

—Staff writer Kaylyn H. Kim can be reached at kaylyn.kim@thecrimson.com.