Harvard Lights Shine Once Again in Head of the Charles Sweep

Head coach Billy Boyce’s men’s lightweight rowing program followed its streak of incredible seasons with a return to the water on Saturday, storming the Head of the Charles Regatta.

The team swept the Head of the Charles’ men’s lightweight events with its second consecutive win in the Lightweight 4+ and fifth consecutive victory in the Lightweight 8+. The Crimson also secured its first program title in the Club 4+ race.

Boyce’s rowers kicked off the weekend with the Saturday win in the Men’s Club 4+, coxed by sophomore Sona Hawkins. Despite facing nearly 40 other boats, the Crimson prevailed in 17:09.523, over three seconds ahead of the second-place boat from Riverside Boat Club.

Rolling into Sunday with momentum, Harvard raced two boats in the Men’s Lightweight 4+ event, which featured a smaller lineup of just 11 boats. The Lightweight 4+ “A,” coxed by sophomore Haley Hicks, took gold for the second year in a row. The Crimson’s top boat clocked 15:45.379 on the three-mile Head of the Charles course, placing just over a second ahead of the second-place University of Pennsylvania boat.

The second Harvard Lightweight 4+, coxed by senior Ericka Lai, finished third to secure the team’s second spot on the podium in the event.

The Crimson concluded its regatta with one of the weekend’s signature events: The Men’s Lightweight 8+ on Sunday afternoon.

Harvard’s boat, stroked by junior Andrew Buda and coxed by sophomore Nathalie Gregg, faced familiar Ivy League foes, including Penn, Princeton, and Dartmouth, in a field of nine boats.

Yet, keeping its dominant streak alive, the Crimson rowed to a comfortable, confident win, clocking a time of 13:47.570. Harvard finished 13 seconds ahead of the second-place Big Green boat, completing its fifth consecutive win in this event.

The Crimson’s first varsity eight has been at the pinnacle of lightweight rowing for the past several years. Beyond its back-to-back-to-back-to-back-to-back record at the Head of the Charles, it also completed its third consecutive national title defense in May.

Harvard graduated several key rowers from last season, but following the crews’ performances this weekend, Boyce’s younger rowers are given a chance to shine.

“This one’s really special because this is a new group, three of the guys in there are returners, and the rest have either come up through the JV or are first-years,” Boyce said. “It’s exciting to see the culture continue on even though we graduated some incredible oarsmen last year.”

The rest of the team shares the same sentiment. Captain Preston Darling explained that many athletes stepped up to contribute to the program’s dominant performance.

“Losing a lot of guys was actually an opportunity for guys who have been in their shadow to step forward and find the motivation to not only fill the shoes, but push past them,” Darling explained.

“The transition is seamless; the program doesn’t rely on individuals but instead produces consistent results through absolute faith in the training,” the captain added.

Looking ahead to the spring competition season, Boyce sees the weekend sweep as a promising sign of what’s to come.

“This feels like the start of the next era rather than just the fourth or fifth year of the previous era, so this is very satisfying to get started on such a positive note,” he said.

In his 10 years as the head coach of the lightweight team, Boyce has transformed the program into the most consistently successful team in the country, and one that is incredibly exciting to watch.

After years of dominance by the Crimson’s old guard, the top eight’s future looks bright, featuring three returning rowers, five exceptional rising stars, and one of the top coxswains in collegiate lightweight rowing.

Rowing has a unique season, with Head of the Charles in the fall setting the tone for the main races and championship events to come in the spring. Coach Boyce was cautious, yet optimistic, looking ahead to the spring.

“This is satisfying,” he said of the weekend sweep. “It shows the guys have trained hard and what we’re doing is effective. It can cut both ways if they take too much from it and get complacent; it can be a problem. But if they keep working hard and recognize that what they’re doing is paying off, then it can really inspire them to keep digging.”

The Harvard lightweight crew’s spring season will begin April 10 against Dartmouth University in Hanover, N.H.

The team’s fans will have to wait a few months to see the crews in action again, but the program’s strength and promise showcased at the Head of the Charles will help them carry through.

—Staff writer Asher M. Meron can be reached at [email protected].