GOLD RIVER, Calif. – Coming off a strong start to the 2019 IRA National Championship on Friday, the Navy lightweight crew program came back on Sunday and closed out the national regatta with emphatic results as the Mids secured two IRA titles and the second-most points in the team point standings. Buoyed by national champion efforts by its varsity four with a coxswain and varsity four without a coxswain crews, Navy tied for second place with Princeton in the standings at the season-ending championship at Lake Natoma in Gold River, California.
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The Mids began Sunday with back-to-back victories by its fours. First up was the varsity four without a coxswain. After posting the third fastest time during Friday's qualifying heat action, the V4- shaved over four seconds off its initial time of 6:15.368 with a scorching result of 6:11.353 in the grand final that surpassed its nearest opponent, Harvard, by 6.18 seconds as the Crimson crossed the finish line at 6:17.533. The crew of
Clay Jackson,
Noah Chaskin,
Creig Tarrant and
Matthew Pentaleri made sure that Navy's V4- was able to repeat as event champions after its 2018 crew finished first at last year's regatta in New Jersey.
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Navy's varsity four with a coxswain joined their brethren in the winner's circle as it cleared the six-team field in the grand final by nearly two seconds. Navy's V4+ lineup of
Kaden Dohm,
Patrick Watler,
Andy Laberee,
Myles Knight and coxswain
Christophe Theodore completed the 2,000-meter race in a time of 6:25.819. Columbia (6:27.702), Cornell (6:28.350) and Penn (6:28.534) all battled down the stretch in a close trio of crews that finished second, third and fourth, respectively.Â
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"Our Coxed Four and Straight Four kicked off the day in tremendous fashion this morning," remarked head coach
Shawn Bagnall. "Our entire program can be proud of their victories. A good number of those athletes took a tough weekend of racing a few weeks back at the Eastern Sprints and used it as motivation through the short IRA training camp. Hats off to Coach Sands, who selected and coached-up that group to achieve some outstanding results."
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The grand final for the varsity eight was the last contest for the lightweights at Lake Natoma on Sunday. Coming off heat racing on Friday that saw the first through sixth seeds separated by 5.037 seconds, Sunday saw more ultra-competitive action as the entire field clocked in between 5:44.426 and 5:50.086. Cornell and Princeton found itself in a one-on-one battle at the front of the field as the Big Red won with a time of 5:44.426, while the Tigers were a tick back at 5:44.849. Navy was part of a trio of crews that challenged for fourth place. As the race went final, Columbia was able to withstand the pressure to take fourth with a time of 5:47.573. Yale and Navy went stroke-for-stroke to the conclusion of the race with the Bulldogs edging the Mids by just 0.172 seconds, 5:49.914 to 5:50.086. Navy's lineup at the IRAs consisted of
Drew Bennett,
Ben Capannari,
Theo Freidenrich,
John Schoenewolf,
Riki Gagnon,
Chandler Washburn,
Ben Skinner,
Duke Brady and coxswain
Jack Ransick.Â
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"We knew the Grand Final would be a barn-burner, and it was undoubtedly a classic National Championship battle," said Bagnall. "Our 8+ got off the blocks in a strong way and battled all the way down the course. The finish for fifth and sixth place came down to 0.1 seconds. While our guys fell short of what their expectations were heading into the final, they can all be proud of that final race of 2019."
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At the conclusion of the regatta, Cornell was crowned the team point champions with 60 points, 36 of which came from the Big Red's V8 victory. Navy was three points back with 57 to tie with Princeton for second overall.Â
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"Finishing tied for second in the team point standings at the IRA National Championship is a credit to each athlete on our team, whether they raced this weekend or not," remarked Bagnall. "This 2019 season was yet another positive step forward for the Navy Lightweight Team. Qualifying our boats for Grand Finals, and racing to win is the standard, not the exception. We are excited for what's next for those that will be back and extend our deepest gratitude to those Commissioned Officers of the Class of 2019 who are leaving an outstanding legacy. Go Goats."
Race ResultsÂ
Varsity Eight
Grand Final
Cornell – 5:44.426
Princeton – 5:44.849
Penn – 5:46.244
Columbia – 5:47.573
Yale – 5:49.914
Navy – 5:50.086 **Sixth in Nation
Varsity Four w/Coxswain
Grand Final
Navy – 6:25.819 **First in Nation
Columbia – 6:27.702
Cornell – 6:28.350
Penn – 6:28.534
Princeton – 6:32.454
Georgetown – 6:33.172
Varsity Four w/o Coxswain
Grand Final
Navy – 6:11.353 **First in NationÂ
Harvard – 6:17.533
Dartmouth – 6:19.030
Penn – 6:20.487
Princeton – 6:23.503
Mercyhurst – 6:25.938
Boat Lineups
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