Aug. 12, 2009
ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Naval Academy Director of Athletics Chet Gladchuk announced today that Steve Perry has been named as the head coach of the lightweight crew team. A former assistant coach with the program, Perry returns to Annapolis after spending four years as the head coach of Dartmouth's lightweight crew team.
"My heart has to be in it wherever I coach. It became apparent to me that this decision was easier to make because I am following my heart and leading with it and Navy is a great fit for me," stated Perry. "The allure of coaching midshipmen at the Academy is fantastic. You have a group of athletes who are very determined and greatly motivated. It's an opportunity that you may have only once or twice in your life and being a part of Navy Crew again is something I am very excited about. The Naval Academy and its tremendous history of fast crews is very important to U.S. collegiate rowing and I am honored to be a part of that.
"Coach (Rob) Friedrich and Coach (Nick) Baker have developed a great team and to fill their shoes will be a difficult task. Rather, I hope to pick up where they left off and help the team reach their potential. I see each year as a new challenge and having a new team to work with, new opponents to race, and new ideas and theories to try is tremendously exciting, I am anxious to get started."
Perry guided the Big Green to a 15-7 record during his four-year tenure at Dartmouth. In 2007, he was named the Eastern Association of Rowing Colleges Coach of the Year after his first varsity boat won the Eastern Sprints Championship for the third time in school history and would later place fourth at the IRA National Championship. He also helped Dartmouth claim the Biglin Bowl cup over Harvard and MIT, which equaled the number of wins by the Big Green over the Crimson in the race's first-54 years.
In addition to his work with the Big Green, Perry has worked with the U.S. Under-23 Women's National Rowing Team in each of the last-two summers. This year, he served as the head sweep rowing coach, where he selected, prepared and trained the silver medal-winning women's eight boat at the Under-23 World Championship in Racice, Czech Republic. One year prior, he served as assistant sweep rowing coach and helped the women's eight crew win the gold medal at the Under-23 World Championship in Brandenburg, Germany.
Prior to Dartmouth, Perry served as the lightweight assistant coach at Navy from 2003-05. He coached the Midshipmen to an impressive 33-1 career record with the first freshmen boat during his three years on staff. He mentored the Mids' first freshmen boat to first-place finishes at the Eastern Sprints Championship in 2003 and '05, while helping the second freshmen boat to three-straight Eastern Sprints titles.
Before his first arrival in Annapolis, Perry spent two seasons at Rutgers (2000-01) and one season at Penn (2002) as lightweight assistant coach. With the Scarlet Knights, he produced an 11-6 record with the first freshmen crew, including a fifth-place finish at the Eastern Sprints Championship. During his lone season at Penn, he led the Quakers' first freshmen boat to a 5-2 record - their first winning season in 10 years.
Perry graduated from Rutgers in 2001 and spent four years with the lightweight crew team - three of which he was a first varsity oarsman. He served as the team captain in 1999, during which the Scarlet Knights won the silver medal at the IRA National Championship. In 2001, he traveled with the Rutgers varsity crew to compete in the Henley Regatta and Britannia Cup. Three years prior (1998), his New York Athletic Club's lightweight eight boat won several national championships, as well as the Henley Regatta.
