Middlesex traveled to race Groton for the second time this season, but this time on their infamous 1250-meter "S" course that begins with a floating start. 

The girls' fourth boat had a terrific start and were able to stay ahead of Groton for the first third of the race.  Despite the superior steering of Niki '13, the Groton boat's home course advantage came into play and Middlesex lost by four seconds.  This finish is quite an accomplishment considering Groton won by 18 seconds a mere week prior!  With two up-and-coming novices now in the fourth boat, it's clear that they are gaining speed.  The third boat was also able to close their margin on Groton, despite a Zebra jumping her seat after the breakage point.  Though the crew lost a solid five seconds trying to recover, they rowed hard and finished 10 seconds behind Groton -- half the margin from a week earlier.  The second boat had a heart-wrenching row, catching two crabs and veering off an already tricky-to-navigate course.  They finished 20 seconds behind a very strong Groton crew.  The first boat was really looking to take some seconds back after their close race last week.  This time, the Zebras were able to jump ahead of Groton and stay there for most of the race.  It wasn't until the last turn that the "S" course took its toll, and again Groton's knowledge of the course pushed them ahead by three seconds.

Though all four boats fell to Groton, we were able to close some margins -- great news at this point in the season, when we're trying to get faster every week in preparation for NEIRA's!