June 2, 2007

ANNAPOLIS, Md. - The Navy lightweight crew team saw its varsity eight boat place sixth in the grand final of the Intercollegiate Rowing Association National Championship Saturday on the Cooper River in Camden, N.J. It marked the third-straight year the Mids have placed sixth at the event.

Navy comfortably, finished in third place during its trial heat, finishing three seconds in back of second-place Dartmouth and seven seconds in front of fourth-place Columbia, which advanced the boat into the grand final.

Cornell would go on to win the grand final with a time of 5:46.344, with Navy completing the 2,000-meter course in a time of 5:52.185.

"We're disappointed by our final result," said Navy head coach Rob Friedrich. "We had a great few weeks of training heading into this week, and had a good, controlled heat this morning which we felt set us up well going into the grand final."

In addition to the varsity eight race, members of the lightweight program also comprised Navy's entry in the varsity four without coxswain division. The crew won its initial heat Thursday to advance into Saturday's grand final, then posted a win today by three seconds over second-place Hobart.

"We're very happy for our straight four crew," said Friedrich. "They really dominated the racing today. They won a gold medal a few weeks ago at the Eastern Sprints as members of our second varsity crew, so to cap off their season with a win today is a great accomplishment.

"That entire crew will return for us next year, so we are excited about their opportunity to compete for seats in our varsity boat."

Varsity Eight - 6th place overall
Trial Heat - 3rd of 6 - Harvard, 5:49.904; Dartmouth, 5:51.314; Navy, 5:54.171; Columbia, 6:01.076; Delaware, 6:05.094; Georgia Tech, 6:07.911
Grand Final - 6th of 6 - Cornell, 5:46.344; Harvard, 5:47.466; Georgetown, 5:47.495; Dartmouth, 5:48.486; Yale, 5:51.813; Navy, 5:52.185

Varsity Four without Coxswain - 1st place overall
Grand Final - 1st of 5 - Navy, 6:18.138; Hobart, 6:21.842; Syracuse, 6:22.466; Wisconsin, 6:23.419; Colgate, 6:27.879