April 11, 2009
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Navy men's heavyweight crew team recorded a stellar performance at the George Washington Invitational, as it won seven of the eight races on Saturday on the Potomac River. As a result, Navy claimed the men's and overall regatta trophy.
"Today was a good day, in the regard that we won both the men's and overall trophies," stated Navy head coach Rick Clothier. "We've been able to have three good races this weekend and it's certainly a good first step to start the season."
Saturday's races featured several close finishes, as five of Navy's eight races were decided by four seconds or less.
Highlighting the performances on Saturday was Navy's first varsity crew, which came into the day ranked 13th nationally. In the morning, the Midshipmen defeated Georgetown's 17th-ranked boat, 5:37.6-5:42.9. Navy came back in the afternoon to take on host George Washington, who was ranked 16th nationally in the event. The two teams produced a highly-competitive race as the Mids had just enough to top the host Colonials by less than a second, 5:30.8-5:31.1.
"The first varsity race during the afternoon was incredibly intense," said Clothier. "George Washington took the early lead, then we leveled it off. After that, it was back-and-forth for the rest of the race and both teams really pushed each other. It came as no surprise that it was the fastest race of the weekend."
Navy's second varsity boat pulled out a pair of narrow victories on the Potomac River. During the morning against Georgetown, the Midshipmen edged the Hoyas by 2.0 seconds, 5:47.3-5:49.3. In the afternoon, Navy again came away as the victors in a close race, this time defeating George Washington by 3.1 seconds, 5:44.6-5:47.7.
The first freshman boat from Navy also recorded a pair of convincing triumphs on Saturday. The Midshipmen defeated Georgetown by 12.9 seconds in the morning, 5:45.6-5:58.5, before registering a 14.5-second win against George Washington in the afternoon, 5:44.5-5:59.0.
Navy's second freshman crew reversed its fortunes from the morning race, where it fell by 2.2 seconds to George Washington, in the afternoon. The Midshipmen trimmed more than eight seconds off its time to defeat the Colonials the second time around, 5:59.1-6:01.8.
Navy (3-0) will return to action next Saturday, April 18, when it heads up to Onondaga Lake in Syracuse, N.Y., to take on Cornell and Syracuse for the Stag Trophy - which is presented to the team with that compiles the most overall points. The trio of teams will also compete for the Goes Trophy - which is awarded to the winner of the varsity eight race.
Navy at the George Washington Invitational - April 11, 2009
-Morning Races-
1st Varsity - Navy 5:37.6, Georgetown 5:42.9
2nd Varsity - Navy 2V 5:47.3, Georgetown 5:49.3, Navy 3V 6:00.8
1st Freshman - Navy 5:45.6, Georgetown 5:58.5
2nd Freshman - George Washington 6:05.2, Navy 6:07.4, Georgetown 6:22.2
-Afternoon Races-
1st Varsity - Navy 5:30.8, George Washington 5:31.1
2nd Varsity - Navy 2V 5:44.6, George Washington 5:47.7, Navy 3V 6:04.2
1st Freshman - Navy 5:44.5, George Washington 5:59.0
2nd Freshman - Navy 5:59.1, George Washington 6:01.8, Georgetown 6:19.3
