#17 Orange Retains Orange Challenge Cup

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – The No. 17 Syracuse University women's rowing team retained the Orange Challenge Cup with a victory in a first varsity eight competition against Northeastern on Tuesday afternoon on Saratoga Lake. It marked the third straight year that Syracuse has won the Orange Challenge Cup.

The Orange Challenge Cup was originally scheduled to be on the line at the Nordic Nine in Ithaca, N.Y. on Friday, April 3. Due to weather conditions, the race could not be completed that day. Northeastern would go on to defeat Penn the next day and Syracuse would beat the Quakers at the Clemson Invite to setup Tuesday's race.

"This is one of the oldest races in women's collegiate rowing and we did not want to miss a year," head coach Justin Moore said. "A big debt of gratitude to the folks at Saratoga for helping us set this up and maintain the historical significance of this cup."

Syracuse defeated Northeastern by 13.8 seconds in strong head winds to retain the trophy for the third season in-a-row. The Orange clocked in at 7:16.4, while the Huskies covered the 2,000 meter course in 7:30.2.

"This was by far our strongest effort over the whole 2,000 meter course this season," praised Moore.

The Orange will now head down to the 2015 Atlantic Coast Conference Championship. Syracuse will begin racing on Friday night at 6 p.m. on Lake Hartwell in Clemson, S.C. Competition will conclude with the finals on Saturday morning at 8 a.m. Live coverage of the finals will be available on ESPN3.

Syracuse University Athletics

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