PRINCETON, N.J. – The Navy rowing program had a strong outing on Sunday at the 2021 Princeton Chase as the heavyweight and lightweight teams combined for three top-five results, including a victory by the lightweight's first varsity boat and a third-place finish by the first heavyweight crew. Competing against a deep and talented collection of schools, the Mids had 14 boats racing on the three-mile course at Lake Carnegie in central New Jersey.
 
The lightweight program was involved in three separate classifications of racing on Sunday with the majority of their action in the Men's Lightweight Eights. With five boats entered in the premier event for lightweight teams, the Mids' first varsity eight crew dominated the field and cruised to a 5.896-second victory over Cornell, 12:43.877 to 12:49.773. Navy's top varsity crew also clocked in better than the first boats from Princeton (12:53.156), Penn (12:56.953), Harvard (12:58.963) and Delaware (13:49.184). The Mids' second varsity eight placed seventh overall in the field and was second amongst its fellow 2V8 entries trailing just Penn's B boat by 2.259 seconds, as the Quakers clocked in at 13:06.987 versus a 13:09.246 for the Mids.
 
In an open Men's Eights – Round 2 competition with an assortment of heavyweight and lightweight crews looking for a second three-mile piece after a few hours of rest, Navy's lightweight entry placed fifth overall with a time of 13:24.598. The Mids' crew was the second fastest lightweight entry trailing just Cornell, who clocked in at 13:14.189.
 
The final event that had Navy lightweight boats racing was the Men's Fours open contest. Racing against heavyweight and lightweight crews, the Mids had both of its crews place in the top-10 as their first boat clocked in with a time of 14:42.226, that edged Princeton's lightweight boat by less than half a second in a battle for seventh place. Navy's second four-man crew was just over six seconds back in tenth place at 14:48.324.
 
The heavyweight program had six entries racing on Sunday with all boats participating in the Men's Heavyweight Eights contest. Taking on a field of 40 crews in the first event of the day, the Mids' first varsity boat was fast throughout posting the third fastest split time to the Harrison Street Bridge before heading down to the finish line with that same third-place standing with a time of 12:44.626. Navy was only out-paced by Princeton and Syracuse in the three-mile head race. The Mids finished ahead of the Wisconsin Badgers and Yale Bulldogs, who clocked in at 12:54.345 and 12:57.566, respectively. Navy's B and C entries also finished in the top half of the field with times of 13:17.574 and 13:24.434, that placed them 17th and 20th, respectively.
 
"It was a strong day for our program, but we still have plenty of speed to gain," remarked heavyweight head coach Rob Friedrich. "This was the best first varsity finish at the Princeton Chase in many years, but the guys thought they could have raced even better. All of our boats performed well and the depth was definitely on display, having the fastest fifth and sixth boats of any school.
 
"The team is ready to have a productive winter season and make some strong improvements for the spring. This has been a great group to coach and they are committed to taking our speed to the next level."
 
Sunday marked the final action for the heavyweight program in the 2021 calendar year, while the lightweights will suite up one more time next Saturday at the UVA Fall Classic.
 
Results
Men's Heavyweight Eights (40 in field)
1-Princeton – 12:26.673
2-Syracuse – 12:26.983
3-Navy A – 12:44.626
4-Wisconsin – 12:54.345
17-Navy B – 13:17.574
20-Navy C – 13:24.434
24-Navy D – 13:37.344
25-Navy E – 13:39.620
27-Navy F – 13:40.798
 
Men's Lightweight Eights (21 in field)
1-Navy A – 12:43.877
2-Cornell A – 12:49.773
3-Princeton A – 12:53.156
7-Navy B – 13:09.246
12-Navy C – 13:26.811
14-Navy D – 13:31.776
18-Navy E – 14:17.171
 
Men's Eights Round 2 (13 in field)
1-Wisconsin HWT A – 12:51.391
2-Penn HWT A – 13:00.852
3-Cornell LWT A – 13:14.189
4-Wisconsin HWT B – 13:16.010
5-Navy LWT A – 13:24.598
 
Men's Fours (30 in field)
1-Syracuse HWT A – 13:58.892
2-Princeton HWT A – 14:00.100
3-Princeton HWT B – 14:09.430
6-Harvard LWT B – 14:36.981
7-Navy LWT A – 14:42.226
10-Navy LWT B – 14:48.324