PRINCETON, N.J. – The Navy lightweight crew saw action in a trio of events on Sunday at the 2018 Princeton Chase on Lake Carnegie. Entering 10 boats across the Varsity Eights, Varsity Fours and Freshmen Eights races, the Mids tallied three top-10 results amongst a deep and talented field of combatants.
 
The Men's Varsity Eights race was first up for the Mids on Sunday. Navy had four boats in the field of 22 and saw its top boat finish on the podium with the third-best time in the head competition. Navy's 'A' boat posted a time of 13:24.458 on the 2.75-mile course. Only Cornell (13:10.182) and Princeton (13:15.084) bested Navy. 
 
The Mids' plebe rowers got a chance to showcase their skills in a 18-boat mixed heavyweight/lightweight Freshmen Eights event. While heavyweight crews took three of the top-four finishing spots, Navy's 'B' crew was in the mix with the top lightweight boats with its time of 14:06.472, that ranked eighth overall. Delaware 'A' was the top lightweight freshmen boat at 13:56.830 before Cornell 'A' and Dartmouth 'A' came in just seconds ahead of Navy with respective times of 14:01.940 and 14:02.368.
 
The Mids' varsity ranks hit the water once again in the afternoon Varsity Fours race. Navy's 'A' and 'D' boats found themselves in a tightly-packed quartet of crews for positions nine through 12. Separated by 3.76 seconds, Penn 'B', Navy 'A', Navy 'D' and Princeton 'E' finished in quick succession with the Quakers clocking in at 15:11.196. The two Midshipmen crews came in 10th and 11th overall with times of 15:12.244 and 15:14.108, respectively. Princeton 'E' was edged by Navy 'D' as the Tigers came in 12th with a 15:14.956 result. 
 
"We thought the effort in all of the boats that raced today was there on Lake Carnegie, including our plebe eights that raced hard at their first Chase," remarked head coach Shawn Bagnall. 
 
"While the finish in the Varsity Eights for our "A" lineup was close to what we were aiming for, both the coaches and athletes know there's more speed within our team to be had. I feel as though I could have done a better job getting the right athletes into the right seats, which led to a bit of a disappointment in the Varsity 8+ and 4+ events. Luckily, we have time this winter to continue to suss out lineups that will allow us to put our best product on the water this coming spring."
 
Navy will close out its fall slate of racing next Saturday at the Rutgers Fall Classic in New Brunswick, N.J.
 
Results
Men's Varsity LWT Eights (22 in field)
1-Cornell – 13:10.182
2-Princeton – 13:15.084
3-Navy 'A' – 13:24.458
14-Navy 'B' – 13:59.118
15-Navy 'C' – 13:59.382
17-Navy 'D' – 14:18.834
 
Men's Freshmen Eights HWT/LWT (18 in field)
1-California HWT 'A' – 13:32.856
7-George Washington HWT 'A' – 14:03.824
8-Navy LWT 'B' – 14:06.472
17-Navy LWT 'A' – 15:14.920
 
Men's Varsity LWT Fours (25 in field)
1-Penn 'A' – 14:48.898
9-Penn 'B' – 15:11.196
10-Navy 'A' – 15:12.244
11-Navy 'D' – 15:14.108
14-Navy 'B' – 15:22.056
15-Navy 'C' – 15:31.438