BOSTON-- On a beautiful day for racing, the No. 3-ranked Wisconsin women's lightweight rowing team claimed a second-place finish at the Charles River Lightweight Invitational in Boston on Sunday.
 
With a nine-point weekend, Wisconsin earned the second place spot at the invitational, behind Boston University. BU's nine points tied the Badgers, but a tie-breaking win in the first varsity eight clinched its top finish for the Founders Cup. UW upset top-ranked Stanford, who finished in third place with a six-point weekend, followed by Harvard-Radcliffe in fourth place. MIT rounded out the podium with a fifth-place, four-point weekend.
 
In stark contrast to Saturday's races, weather conditions on the Charles River featured winds under 10 miles per hour and flat waters. 
 
Earning a berth in both grand final events, the second varsity eight grabbed a first-place finish over Boston University, while the first varsity eight placed third in its race.
 
"The second varsity executed right from the beginning to the end," UW head coach Dusty Mattison said. "It was just awesome to see them be out in front right from the start and continue to lead. They really wanted to work on generating more speed while still staying relaxed, and they really were able to do that and continue to keep pushing away from BU and execute a great race from start to end."
 
The second varsity eight boat, comprised of coxswain Eleanor Martin, Claire Kelley, Julia Glueck, Mackenzie Whiteside, Marilyn Garberg, Gabriela Purman, Christina Stevenson, Jennifer Whitehill, and Emma Landauer, finished the 2000 meter grand final in 6 minutes, 44.9 seconds to grab first place over Boston University.
 
The first varsity eight boat finished its race in a final time of 6:45.2, taking the third-place spot. Wisconsin held strong with No. 1 Stanford and No. 2 Boston University through the race, getting edged out in the final stretch.
 
"In the first varsity eight, I would say that they probably learned the most this weekend," Mattison said. "On Saturday, in the conditions they were just a little bit tense and did not execute as well as they could have. 
 
"Today they really found that if they just relax a little bit more, they can really go after it and apply their power. They found some extra confidence today, which is great to see. We were right in the mix with Stanford and BU off the start and all the way through, so that was exciting to see."
 
Earlier in the day, both Wisconsin boats powered through the racecourse to earn their place in the grand finals. In the first varsity eight, Wisconsin placed second with a time of 6:52.3 to advance, while in the second varsity eight, Wisconsin's time of 6:58.4 earned them the top spot over Harvard-Radcliffe to move on to the grand final.
 
"I also want to acknowledge the coxswains," Mattison added, "who made great changes this weekend and last weekend as well. Sometimes they get lost in the shuffle, but we've been working with them a lot on figuring out the racing style of where we are and continuing to make changes and take great strides to adapt to what is best for the crew. They're really doing a great job of stepping up in that way."
Wisconsin remains close to home for its third race of the spring season, hosting the Big Ten/Big 12 Double Dual at Devil's Lake in Baraboo, Wis. on April 23.


Charles River Lightweight Invitational
Boston, Mass.
Charles River
April 17, 2016
2000 meters

Varsity Eight Grand Final
1. Stanford, (6:32.8); 2. Boston University, (6:40.5); 3. Wisconsin, (6:45.2)
UW Lineup: Coxswain Audrey Dalgarno, Brianna Wynne, Stephanie Meder, Kate Ruffalo, Jenn Kish, Janet Titzler, Mirha Girt, Ariel Tallo, Helena Randle

Second Varsity Eight Grand Final
1. Wisconsin, (6:44.9); 2. Boston University, (6:51.3)
UW Lineup: Coxswain Eleanor Martin, Claire Kelley, Julia Glueck, Mackenzie Whiteside, Marilyn Garberg, Gabriela Purman, Christina Stevenson, Jennifer Whitehill, Emma Landauer


Varsity Eight Heat 2
1. Boston University, (6:44.5); 2. Wisconsin, (6:52.3)
UW Lineup: Coxswain Audrey Dalgarno, Brianna Wynne, Stephanie Meder, Kate Ruffalo, Jenn Kish, Janet Titzler, Mirha Girt, Ariel Tallo, Helena Randle

Second Varsity Eight Heat 2
1. Wisconsin, (6:58.4); 2. Harvard-Radcliffe, (7:03.8)
UW Lineup: Coxswain Eleanor Martin, Claire Kelley, Julia Glueck, Mackenzie Whiteside, Marilyn Garberg, Gabriela Purman, Christina Stevenson, Jennifer Whitehill, Emma Landauer