The spirit of the Ivy League

Wondering what happened in the realm of physical activity this weekend? Bwog sportsman Ross Chapman sets the boat things straight regarding all things Columbia athletics related!

The weather is getting ready to make us put on our hats and scarves, which means it’s time for the rowing teams to cut their sleeves and hit the weights and waters. Rowing is an all-year sport, and the cold waters of the Housatonic near Yale in Shelton, Connecticut surely attest to that. A little rain didn’t help the comfort (but didn’t hurt the performance) of Columbia’s fearless crew men, who rowed 2.7 miles in four different boats of eight at the Head of the Houstaonic competition to kick off their season.

Because this wasn’t a huge regional or national competition, head coach Scott Alwin decided to mix the skill, weight and power levels of the rowers. This meant that instead of having a first-team and second-team, two boats were nearly equal in ability. The front two teams for the Lions finished in 13:56 and 13:57, respectively, while our third boat held off the trailing Union team and finished in 14:30. Another positive effect of the tournament’s organization is that it had a novice division, now very rare for rowing competitions, which allowed many of the first-years on the team to row together. The 14:25 time clocked was second among the 11 novice eights. This promising team of recruits and walk-ons alike will advance in power and precision in the next four years, which bodes well for Columbia’s future in what might be the most iconic of all Ivy sports.

Here’s how the rest of the Lions shaped up this weekend:

• Field Hockey (8-4, 2-1 Ivy) continued their winning ways by playing a bit of catch-up this weekend. Against Towson, they allowed a goal before scoring three unanswered of their own, leading eventually to a 5-3 victory. Two days later, they gave up two first half goals to UMass, but scored three in a row again to defeat the Minutewomen. Next home game: Sunday, October 26th vs Dartmouth at 12 PM

• Women’s Golf represented the east coast at the Edean Ihlanfeldt invitational at the University of Washington outside of Seattle earlier in the week. The team finished seventh overall out of 12 as Camilla Vik and Jacqueline Chulya both shot 73’s in a round for the team low, with Vik pacing the team by tying for 16th place individually. Next event: Saturday, October 18th at the Princeton Invitational

• Cross Country went uptown for a technically-away event at Van Cortlandt Park hosted by Fordham University. Junior Quinn Devlin (sixth overall) led all Lions with a 26:37 time for the five mile race. The men finished in third out of ten while the women, led by Brittney Wade’s 19:30 5K, came in fifth place out of 12. Next events: The men and women split up on Saturday, October 18th to travel to Princeton and Wisconsin

• Soccer had two games against Penn and two games against New Jersey teams. The women (5-2-5, 1-1-1 Ivy) fell to Penn on Friday evening, but the men (4-5, 1-1 Ivy) avenged them the next day, overcoming an 0-1 halftime deficit to defeat the Quakers 2-1. The men lost to Seton Hall on Wednesday, and the women dueled NJIT into two overtimes for a scoreless tie on Sunday. Next home games: Saturday, October 18th vs. Princeton at 4 PM (men) and at 7 PM (women)

• Volleyball (7-7, 3-2 Ivy) went back and forth against Dartmouth and Harvard in Levien. After dropping one set to the Big Green, the Lions rallied to take the next three and come away with a victory on Friday night. The next evening, Harvard came in and alternated sets with Columbia, eventually capturing a tense 3-2 victory over the Lions in a 17-15 final set win. Next home game: Friday, October 31st vs. Princeton at 7 PM (Halloween colors!)

Teamwork, synergy, rah rah rah via Columbia University Athletics/Gene Boyers.