USRowing Women's Eight Crew Nabs Gold- Again

USRowing has done it again.

On Thursday, the women's eight boat once captured Olympic gold, edging out Canada at the Olympic course at Eton Dorney.

The U.S. finished in 6:10.59, followed by Canada in 6:12.06 and The Netherlands in 6:13.12.

"Coming off the line, I felt so much power," coxswain Mary Whipple told US Rowing. " And then when we took our stride, that was beautiful. We were a little high and I just told them to breathe and enjoy this moment. Feel each stroke. Be present. And we were present that whole time. It was magical."

The team, led by head coach Tom Terhaar, includes Whipple (Orangevale, Calif.), Caryn Davies (Ithaca, N.Y.), Caroline Lind (Greensboro, N.C.), Eleanor Logan (Boothbay Harbor, Maine), Meghan Musnicki (Naples, N.Y.), Taylor Ritzel (Larkspur, Colo.), Esther Lofgren (Newport Beach, Calif.), Susan Francia (Abington, Pa.) and Erin Cafaro (Modesto, Calif.)

The womens eight crew, considered the one to beat at the London Olympics, is the six-time defending world champion and now the two-time Olympic champion, having also won gold at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. Davies and Whipple were also part of the crew that brought home the silver medal in the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece.

In May, the team also set a new world best time at the 2012 World Rowing Cup in Lucerne.

US Rowing is based in West Windsor.

Lind, a 2006 graduate of Princeton University, told Patch in June she thought her crew had an excellent chance of winning Olympic Gold in London.

“We have an amazing group of girls,” Lind said. “We all work hard, we’re focused, we’re determined and we have a good track record. I think if we keep improving and we do our best, I think we have a really good shot.”

On Thursday after the team's win, Lind told USRowing, "I think it's a testament to the sheer determination and the heart of the women in the boat. I think that's what it comes down to, because I know that there are other women who are physically gifted and are amazing rowers, but the difference between everyone else and the American team is that we want it bad. We want it more, and I think that heart and togetherness - we do it as a unit, we're stronger as a unit - is what makes us different."