Brunswick raced to a strong second-place finish against a field of 41 boats in the time trials for the Boys Senior Eight at the 91st Stotesbury Cup Regatta on the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia on Friday. The top 18 teams to navigate the 1,500-meter course move to the semifinals on Saturday.
The Bruins, racing the final boat of the time trials, finished the course in 4:31.17, just 1.74 seconds behind time-trial winner and 2016 champion Gonzaga College High School (D.C.).
On Saturday just before noon, the 18 teams, separated into three semifinal races of six boats, will compete for a place in the Grand Final held later in the day. The top two teams of each semifinal will earn a place in the Grand Final, while the next two boats will race in the Petite Final.
The Stotesbury Cup Regatta is the largest high school rowing event in the world. The 2017 Regatta will host nearly 5,400 rowers from across the country, competing in 35 different rowing events.