Drexel again dominates at Dad Vail Regatta
The Dragons win the team title for the third year in a row at the rowing competition on the Schuylkill River.
DREXEL SENIOR Dean Hill has been racing on the Schuylkill River for years, so it's no surprise that he and the rest of the men's varsity four boat pulled out a photo finish for a silver medal and helped the Dragons to their third consecutive Aberdeen Dad Vail Regatta title on Saturday.
Hill's varsity four boat finished with a time of 6 minutes, 33.884 seconds, good for a silver medal, and just narrowly trailing Brock University's boat, which clocked in at 6:33.682 in perhaps the most exciting finish of the weekend.
"Going into that race I knew it was going to be really hard," Hill said. "A lot of these other teams that have a varsity four, it's the top four guys in their program because a lot of schools don't have the varsity eight. Brock, coming down from [St. Catherines, Ontario], Canada, they only come when they're pretty sure that they have a good shot to win.
"That's the best that our four had rowed the entire year. It's tough to see another boat just slide right through you at the finish there, but I couldn't have asked for anything more . . . We just got second place out of 59 boats."
Drexel head coach Paul Savell was with the rest of his team, away from the course, when the varsity four crossed the finish line.
"There was such great team morale," Savell said. "We were broadcasting the Channel 6 coverage at our boathouse and it felt like the roof was going to cave in when our men's varsity four had a photo finish. The entire boathouse just erupted."
The Dragons finished in first place overall with 42 points, winning the men's points title, medaling in six events, and finishing eight points ahead of second-place Delaware.
In addition to runner-up in the men's varsity four, Drexel won gold in the men's second varsity eight and the men's freshmen eight, and earned bronze in the women's varsity eight, men's varsity eight and the men's freshmen four.
Savell, who was named the Matt Ledwidth Award winner for Dad Vail Coach of the Year, had been eyeing Dad Vail since the season opened in September.
"It was one of the first things that we talked about during our team meetings," he said. "It's Philadelphia. Dad Vail is one of the greatest Philadelphia traditions. I've known about this since I was a kid . . . we have so many rowers from the Philadelphia area and South Jersey that have grown up knowing about the Dad Vail Regatta."
Hill, whose father Drew is the former head coach at Saint Joseph's (2002-10), helped the Dragons capture the title in one of his final races for Drexel. He and Savell have been longtime Dad Vail spectators, as well as participants.
"I feel almost like I was born on that river," Dean Hill said. "I went a lot as a kid watching my dad's boats race and watching my sister. I've been on the Schuylkill since before I can remember."
Before his Drexel career, Dean Hill raced on the Schuylkill when he was at St. Joseph's Prep. At Drexel, he has been part of a team that has become a Dad Vail dynasty.
"Drexel's been a Dad Vail school for a long time . . . being on our home river right there where we row every day it's really something," Hill said. "To go out there and put on such a great show and such a great display of speed throughout the entire team."
Entering the regatta with two consecutive titles, Savell knew all the competition would be targeting the Dragons.
"We know that more and more, it's tougher to keep something like that than to get it the first time," Savell said. "More and more people are trying to shoot for you, and I liked how the team held their composure through the weekend and handled the pressure of the situation."
The Dragons' season isn't finished yet. Drexel will compete in the IRA National Championships on Mercer Lake in West Windsor, N.J., May 29-31.
