SARASOTA, Fla. – The Navy women's rowing team begin competition at the 2021 NCAA Championship on Friday with two sets of races. One of the nation's 22 best programs in action in Sarasota, Fla. at the Nathan Benderson Park, the Mids saw their first and second varsity eight crews, as well as their first varsity four squad turn in solid performances with improving times throughout the day. Navy's 2V8 and V4 boats recorded the best repechage results in the afternoon with a matching fifth place finishes.
"We're excited to be in a position to be competing at the NCAA Championship after the last two years," remarked head coach
Joe Schlosberg. "Given that, we did have a bit of a rocky start within the opening heats. We were able to make some adjustments for the reps and raced better in the afternoon. We know we have more speed, we just have to show it. It's a new day tomorrow and we will be ready to race."
The Mids' first varsity turned in a pair of competitive pieces on Friday with a faster time in the afternoon. Hitting the waters of Nathan Benderson Park initially as a part of preliminary heat number three, Navy finished fifth amongst a field of six with a time of 6:46.676. Racing again in the first repechage contest, the Mids took over six seconds off that first time as they clocked in at 6:38.293. Trailing fifth-place Duke by over two seconds at both the 1,000 and 1,500-meter marks, the Mids drew within 1.118 seconds of the Blue Devils at the finish line as Duke posted a 6:37.175 time. Navy finished 14.072 seconds ahead of Rhode Island, who rounded out the seven-team field at 6:52.365. The Mids will next be in action on Saturday morning at 8:12 a.m. in the first C/D Semifinal.
Navy's second varsity eight starting rounding into its top form as the day progressed. The Mids' 2V8 started Friday with a heat time of 7:08.466. Six-plus hours later, Navy cut 15 seconds off that first time with an improved mark of 6:53.279 and a fifth-place standing. In a spaced out second repechage, Rutgers and Wisconsin finished two seconds apart in first and second place before Duke and Princeton came in six seconds back in third and fourth, respectively. Navy was securely in fifth place throughout most of the race and came in 6.918 second behind Princeton (6:46.361) and 6.847 seconds ahead of sixth-place Marist College, who clocked in at 7:00.126. The Mids' schedule on Saturday consists of C/D Semifinal #2 action at 9:12 a.m.
The Mids' varsity four was in the mix throughout the day as they opened competition in the morning with a time of 7:30.830 that was just 0.424 behind Alabama in a preliminary heat battle for fourth place. In the first repechage race in the afternoon, Navy found itself stroke-for-stroke with Wisconsin and once again, Alabama. At the 1,000-meter mark, the Mids were in fourth place ahead of the Badgers, 3:42.437 to 3:43.343. The Crimson Tide were 0.4 seconds clear of the Mids. Over the final 1,000 meters of racing, Alabama held third place with a final time of 7:30.305, while Wisconsin took fourth at 7:30.535. Navy came in 1.43 seconds back at 7:31.965. Tennessee and Marist rounded out the seven-boat field with times of 7:40.855 and 8:12.953, respectively. The Mids will now turn their attention to C/D Semifinal action on Saturday morning beginning at 10:00 a.m.
Results
First Varsity Eight
AM Heat #3
Fifth of Six Teams, 6:46.676
Afternoon Repechage #1
Alabama – 6:28.193
California – 6:29.503
Wisconsin – 6:33.483
Tennessee – 6:34.043
Duke – 6:37.175
Navy – 6:38.293
Rhode Island – 6:52.365
Next Up: C/D Semifinals #1 (Saturday, 8:12 AM)
Second Varsity Eight
AM Heat #2
Fifth of Five Teams, 7:08.466
Afternoon Repechage #2
Rutgers – 6:36.481
Wisconsin – 6:38.546
Duke – 6:44.671
Princeton – 6:46.361
Navy – 6:53.279
Marist – 7:00.126
Gonzaga – 7:01.921
Next Up: C/D Semifinals #2 (Saturday, 9:12 AM)
First Varsity Four
AM Heat #4
Fifth of Six Teams, 7:30.830
Afternoon Repechage #1
Syracuse – 7:23.988
Duke – 7:26.348
Alabama – 7:30.305
Wisconsin – 7:30.535
Navy – 7:31.965
Tennessee – 7:40.855
Marist – 8:12.953
Next Up: C/D Semifinals #2 (Saturday, 10:00 AM)
Boat Lineups
