Rowing inches closer at Rivanna

The rowing team inched ever closer to positioning itself side by side the best team in the ACC.

One year after a humiliating experience at the Rivanna Romp, Duke's rowers returned to Charlottesville and proved to host Virginia that the third-year program is on its way up, and fast.

"We are just trying to take a step up every year and close the margin," coach Robyn Horner said. "We went to the Rivanna Romp last year and pretty much got our butts kicked...."

Last year, the fall season ended with a thud when the Blue Devils were relegated to a ninth-place finish in the varsity-eight competition and 10th- and 12th-place performances in the varsity-four competition at the annual Rivanna Romp. Saturday, however, those results were a thing of the past as Duke crept its way into the hunt in every race.

In the varsity-eight race, the Blue Devils shaved more than 39 seconds off their pace from last season to move up to fourth. The dramatic improvement left them behind only Ohio State and two boats of Cavaliers, who have established themselves as perennial top-five finishers at the NCAA Championships.

In the varsity-four race, Duke's rowers again came in fourth, this time hastening their speed by 40 seconds over their fastest boat last season. Like the varsity-eight event, Virginia thoroughly dominated this race, while the Blue Devils and Buckeyes battled for third, with Ohio State pulling across the finish line a mere six seconds ahead of Duke.

The Blue Devils unseated Ohio State in the novice-eight event, placing second behind the Cavs. Duke also claimed the title in the regatta's final race at the Rivanna Reservoir, where Duke edged rival North Carolina in the pair competition.

All told, the rowing team's performance in the four races pulled it closer than it has ever been to ACC pace-setter Virginia.