ITHACA, N.Y. — The Cornell men's heavyweight rowing program returns to the water this weekend when it begins postseason action at the annual Eastern Sprints regatta on Lake Quinsigamond in Worcester, Mass.

Cornell will send five varsity eight crews to Worcester, and all four varsity crews participating in heats during the morning session will be racing from Lane 4.

The first heat that will include Cornell will feature the 4V8, which will be the day's opening race at 8 a.m., competing against Harvard, Brown, Dartmouth, Boston University, Georgetown, and Holy Cross. The 3V8 crew is scheduled to race at 8:40 a.m. in the final of three 3V8 heats, facing Princeton, Yale, and Boston University. At 9:20 a.m., the V8 will row in the second heat, competing against Princeton, Penn, Northeastern, and Navy. Completing Cornell's quartet of heats, the 2V8 will race in the third heat at 10:30 a.m. against Princeton, Penn, Boston University, and Holy Cross.

The only predetermined heavyweight grand final that Cornell will participate in is the 5V8, scheduled to start at 1:24 p.m., which will also include crews from Yale, Brown, Navy, Penn, Dartmouth, and Princeton.

LAST TIME AT EASTERN SPRINTS
Cornell raced in five different categories at last year's Eastern Sprints, also on Lake Quinsigamond, appearing in four Petite Finals and one Grand Final (V4), where the Big Red placed third with a time of 6:42.605, finishing behind first-place Boston University (6:33.721) and Harvard (6:37.307). The Big Red edged out Columbia (6:50.585) and Georgetown (7:11.103).

The 3V8 crew placed third in its Petite Final with a time of 5:54.084, finishing behind Syracuse (5:47.140) and Northeastern (5:48.628). The 1V4 crew also secured third in its Petite Final, recording a time of 5:41.904. Dartmouth won the race with a time of 5:35.298, just ahead of Boston University's 5:37.148 clip.

Placing fourth in their respective Petite Finals was Cornell's 2V4 and 4V4 crews.

EASTERN SPRINTS HISTORY
Cornell will be seeking its first Rowe Cup since winning consecutive titles in 1962 and 1963, which marked the conclusion of the Big Red's string of six championships within a nine-year span between 1955 and 1963. The Big Red's six Rowe Cup victories (1955, 1956, 1957, 1960, 1962, 1963) are tied with Brown and Navy for the fourth-most in the regatta's history since the Rowe Cup was first awarded in 1946. Only Harvard (34), Princeton (10), and Yale (7) have won more titles.

The Big Red will also be seeking its fifth Ivy League title and its first since 1996, when it shared the honors with Penn. Brown snapped Yale's seven-year reign as Ivy League champions last year, claiming its first Ivy title since 2012.

Brown will be vying to retain the Worcester Bowl, awarded to the top-finishing crew in the 1V8 race, after winning last year's title for the first time since 2012. The Bears have not won consecutive Worcester Bowls since 1993 and 1994. Cornell will be seeking its first Worcester Bowl title since 1963. The Big Red also won the trophy in 1956, 1957, and 1960.

Other trophies up for grabs this weekend include the EARC Trophy, formerly known as the Richard A. Glendon Trophy, which is awarded to the top-finishing 2V8+ crew, and the Kenneth F. Burns Trophy, designated for the first-place 3V8+ crew. Cornell last won the EARC Trophy in 2005, marking the eighth occasion the Big Red claimed the award, joining the crews from 1955, 1956, 1957, 1960, 1962, 1963, and 1981. The last time Cornell secured the Kenneth F. Burns Trophy was in 1974, when the Big Red's freshman crew finished first.

LAST TIME OUT
Cornell registered clean sweeps against No. 19-ranked Holy Cross and No. 21-ranked Oregon State on the Cooper River in Pennsauken Township, N.J., a southeast suburb of Philadelphia, two weekends ago. The Big Red also raced against No. 8-ranked Penn, where the Quakers won the first four varsity races, retaining the Madeira Cup for a second consecutive season.

Opening its weekend of racing in suburban Philadelphia against Holy Cross, Cornell swept all four races against the Crusaders, highlighted by a 14-second victory by the Big Red's 3V8+ after achieving a time of 5:45.6, the second-fastest mark recorded by the Big Red on the day. Following an 8.6-second victory by the 2V8+, Cornell's 1V8+ edged Holy Cross by 4.9 seconds with the fastest performance of the day, 5:41.6. Rounding out the slate, Cornell's 4V8+ claimed the closest margin of victory on the day, crossing the finish line 4.7 seconds ahead of Holy Cross.

The following day, Cornell began competition against Penn, with the Big Red's only victory over the Quakers occurring in the 5V8+ race, where it edged Penn's crew by 1.2 seconds. All four of Penn's victories came by at least five seconds, highlighted by its 9.9-second victory in the Madeira Cup race, clocking a time of 5:32.7, ahead of Cornell's 5:42.6 piece. Penn's 9.9-second victory marked the largest margin of victory in the Madeira Cup race since 2019, when Cornell won by 12.1 seconds. It was Penn's largest victory over Cornell since winning by 15.1 seconds in 1998.
 
Returning to the water after an hour break from racing, Cornell began with a 4.9-second victory over Oregon State in the 3V8, recording a time of 5:49.1. The Big Red also fielded a 4V8 and 5V8 crew, with respective times of 6:01.3 and 6:21.1. The 2V8 crew recorded a time of 5:54.5, finishing 3.2 seconds ahead of Oregon State, before the Big Red's 1V8 achieved a four-second victory, completing the sweep of the Beavers for the fifth consecutive meeting.

BOATINGS
Yet to be announced

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS - HEATS
8 a.m. — 4V8 Heat 1: Harvard (Lane 0), Brown (Lane 1), Dartmouth (Lane 2), Boston University (Lane 3), Cornell (Lane 4), Georgetown (Lane 5), Holy Cross (Lane 6)
 
8:40 a.m. — 3V8 Heat 3: Princeton (Lane 1), Yale (Lane 2), Boston University (Lane 3), Cornell (Lane 4)
 
9:20 a.m. — V8 Heat 2: Princeton (Lane 1), Penn (Lane 2), Northeastern (Lane 3), Cornell (Lane 4), Navy (Lane 5)
 
10:30 a.m. — 2V8 Heat 3: Princeton (Lane 1), Penn (Lane 2), Boston University (Lane 3), Cornell (Lane 4), Holy Cross (Lane 5)
 
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS - HEATS
1:24 p.m. — 5V8 Grand Final: Yale (Lane 0), Brown (Lane 1), Navy (Lane 2), Cornell (Lane 3), Penn (Lane 4), Dartmouth (Lane 5), Princeton (Lane 6)
 
1:54 p.m. — 4V8 Petite Final
 
2:04 p.m. — 4V8 Grand Final
 
2:38 p.m. — 3V8 Third Final
 
2:48 p.m. — 3V8 Petite Final
 
2:58 p.m. — 3V8 Grand Final
 
3:40 p.m. — 2V8 Third Final
 
3:50 p.m. — 2V8 Petite Final
 
4 p.m. — 2V8 Grand Final
 
4:34 p.m. — V8 Third Final
 
4:44 p.m. — V8 Petite Final
 
4:54 p.m. — V8 Grand Final