March 26, 2011

PRINCETON, N.J. - The Navy lightweight rowing team opened its spring season at Princeton on Saturday where the Tigers won four of six races and also retained the Joe Murtaugh Cup with a victory in the first varsity race.

"For our first race, everything went off without a hitch and everyone raced hard," said Navy head coach Steve Perry. "However, it was disappointing to not win more races than we lost. With that said, our foundation is strong and that will help us find speed. This is our first of six races leading up to the Eastern Sprints, so there's time to make some improvements."

Princeton, the two-time defending EARC and IRA national champion, held off Navy in the varsity eight race as the Mids finished with a time of 6:21.1 - nine seconds behind the Tigers. MIT placed third with a 6:43.9.

Navy picked up solid wins in both the second freshman and fourth varsity races. The Navy second freshman boat posted a 7:04.3 and finished 25 seconds ahead of MIT.

In the fourth varsity race, Navy turned in a 6:28.9, while the Tigers followed in second with a 6:47.2.

The Tigers won the second varsity race by 10 seconds, with the Mids clocking a 6:34.0. The third varsity race, however, was much tighter as the Tigers claimed first place with a time of 6:37.1, while Navy posted a 6:39.4.

The Navy lights will be back in action next weekend when it competes with Yale for the Eads Johnson Trophy on Saturday, April 2 in Princeton, N.J.

First Varsity
Princeton 6:12.1, Navy 6:21.1, MIT 6:43.9

Second Varsity
Princeton 6:24.0, Navy 6:34.0

First Freshman
Princeton 6:29.7, Navy 6:31.5, MIT 7:06.5

Third Varsity
Princeton 6:37.1, Navy 6:39.4

Second Freshman
Navy 7:04.3, MIT 7:28.3

Fourth Varsity
Navy 6:28.9, Princeton 6:47.2