No. 6 Men's Crew Competes at 79th Annual Eastern Sprints

No. 6 Men's Crew Competes at 79th Annual Eastern Sprints

5/17/2026 9:31:00 PM | Men's Crew

** WORCESTER, MASS. - **No. 6 men's crew completed a long day of racing at the 79th annual Eastern Sprints on Lake Quinsigamond late this afternoon, with four of Brown's five boats competing in their respective Grand Finals.

All of the crews raced hard and to finish tied for third in team points is a real accomplishment, Men's Crew Norman W. Alpert '80 Head Coaching Chair Paul Cooke '89 said. I've been impressed by the improvement the Third Varsity has shown and they earned their bronze medals. The Fourth Varsity won a thrilling race to take the Petite Final. The Varsity Four inspired everyone with their victory.

Still, in the Grand Finals of the top events, we fell behind the leaders and didn't have an answer. We'll be working hard to make adjustments and to prepare for the IRA National Championship.

The Bears scrimmaged hard in the weeks leading up to the Sprints, emphasizing power and technique. Competitive practices have been a consistent theme throughout the season, helping the athletes prepare for the challenges they will face on race day.

The First Varsity, coxed by Elenna Seguin and stroked by David Person, earned a second place finish in their heat with a time of 5:43.102. With that result, the V8 has now qualified for the Grand Final at the Eastern Sprints every year since 2005.

In today's Grand Final this afternoon, Bruno's top boat raced towards the back of the pack and looked to close the gap in the middle stages of the race.

The difference between third place and sixth place was 3.128 seconds, with most of the crews stroking at a similar pace throughout the contest. The Bears posted a final time of 5:40.629 and finished in sixth place.

The Second Varsity, coxed by Jack Mershon and stroked by Dom Valt, finished their heat in second place with a time of 5:41.232, less than one second behind Princeton. In the Grand Final, the Bears raced hard and stayed towards the back of the pack. Posting a final time of 5:46.240, Brown was able to pick up a fifth place finish after staying ahead of the Dartmouth Big Green.

The Third Varsity, coxed by Rahul Ramakrishnan and stroked by Fraser Burdett, finished their heat in second place with a time of 5:51.259. After falling behind Princeton and Harvard in the Grand Final, the 3V8 raced hard to secure a podium finish. A tight race ensued between the Bears and Syracuse, with Bruno leaning on their technique and endurance to stave off the Orange and finish in third place with a time of 6:05.262. This is the second year in a row where the 3V8 finished in third at the Sprints.

The Fourth Varsity finished their morning heat with a time of 5:59.808, good enough for fourth place and a spot in the Petite Final. Coxed by Adelaide Poulson and stroked by Reed Lucke, the 4V8 found themselves in the closest race of the day for the Bears. Brown and Northeastern both pulled away from the rest of the field, with both crews racing side-by-side in the final 500 meters.

In a photo finish, Brown pulled out the victory with a time of 6:10.152, while Northeastern crossed the finish line in 6:10.474. The 0.322 seconds that separated each crew represented the smallest margin of victory for any Brown boat at the Sprints.

The Varsity Four competed in their first race of the season today. Coxed by Vijay Ramakrishnan and stroked by Nicolas Abril, the V4 took gold after crossing the finish line in 7:05.630. The Bears defeated second place Princeton by 2.334 seconds in a spirited race between two boats that significantly outpaced their competition.

FULL LINEUPS AND RESULTS

V8

Heat

Dartmouth - 5:41.858

Brown - 5:43.102

Syracuse - 5:44.812

Cornell - 5:51.926

Holy Cross - 5:57.590

Grand Final

Harvard - 5:33.109

Princeton - 5:35.149

Northeastern - 5:37.501

Dartmouth - 5:38.081

Penn - 5:39.617

Brown - 5:40.629

B: Jack Cadwallader

2: Davis Kelly

3: Luca Cassina

4: Sean Egan

5: Nick Gaensler

6: Tom Griffin

7: Isaac Thurnham

S: David Person

C: Elenna Seguin

2V8

Heat

Princeton - 5:40.314

Brown - 5:41.232

Yale - 5:42.144

Wisconsin - 5:52.616

Holy Cross - 5:58.398

Grand Final

Princeton - 5:36.314

Harvard - 5:36.814

Syracuse - 5:43.210

Northeastern - 5:44.584

Brown - 5:46.240

Dartmouth - 5:46.888

B: Christian Lawrence

2: Tilden Vaezi

3: Owen McKenna

4: Eddie Andrews

5: Tristan Green

6: Gordy Gibbons

7: Mees du Croo de Jongh

S: Dom Valt

C: Jack Mershon

3V8

Heat

Princeton - 5:47.677

Brown - 5:51.259

Yale - 5:55.977

Columbia - 5:57.047

Georgetown - 6:10.084

Grand Final

Princeton - 5:53.299

Harvard - 5:53.747

Brown - 6:05.262

Syracuse - 6:07.826

Dartmouth - 6:11.002

Penn - 6:15.136

B: Cole Matlack

2: Morgan Haisman

3: Max Willott

4: Henry Davison

5: Ryan Jorgensen

6: Uros Bogdanov

7: Charlie Hall

S: Fraser Burdett

C: Rahul Ramakrishnan

4V8

Heat

Penn - 5:54.746

Harvard - 5:55.180

Boston University - 5:57.330

Brown - 5:59.808

Navy - 6:04.878

Cornell - 6:21.327

Petite Final

Brown - 6:10.152

Northeastern - 6:10.474

Navy - 6:18.732

Yale - 6:20.152

Cornell - 6:22.540

Columbia - 6:29.040

B: Henry Elbert

2: Samuel Loehnis

3: Symeon Efstathiou

4: Ethan Carey

5: Gavin Green

6: Isaac Hillicks-Tulip

7: Andy Chefetz

S: Reed Lucke

C: Adelaide Poulson

V4

Grand Final

Brown - 7:05.630

Princeton - 7:07.964

Georgetown - 7:16.873

Holy Cross - 7:23.371

Wisconsin - 7:25.905

B: Ivan Augustinov

2: Julien Califano

3: Eric von Albertini Mason

S: Nicolas Abril

C: Vijay Ramakrishnan

Gallery:(5-19-2026) 79th Eastern Sprints

BROWN UNIVERSITY SPORTS FOUNDATION****The Brown University Sports Foundation (BUSF) is the lifeblood of the athletics program, and exists to enhance the student-athlete experience through philanthropic support from alumni, parents, fans and friends. A gift through the Sports Foundation makes an immediate impact on today's Brown Bears and helps them to be their best in the classroom, in competition and most importantly in the community. To learn more about supporting the Bears, please click here. FOLLOW US ON SOCIALFor the latest on Brown Athletics, please follow @BrownU_Bears on X, @BrownU_Bears on Instagram, like BrownUBears on Facebook and subscribe to the BrownAthletics YouTube channel.