WEST WINDSOR, N.J. – Working off strong day one performances at the 2021 IRA National Championship from Friday, the Navy heavyweight crew program had three boats in petite finals and a fourth, the third varsity eight, racing in a grand finals on Saturday at Mercer Lake. At the conclusion of Saturday's final competitions, the Mids placed sixth in the Ten Eyck team point standings as a result of all four boats finishing in the top-10.
 
"As a team, we dedicated our efforts today in memory of our fallen soldiers on Memorial Day Weekend," remarked head coach Rob Friedrich. "We honor their legacy and ultimate sacrifice. All of our boats raced hard and left it all out on the water. I'm proud of all this team has accomplished this year. They remained resilient and focused in the times of adversity. The culture of our entire boathouse is strong and we are proud of all our athletes, including the great results of our lightweight men and women's team this weekend." 
 
The Mids' third varsity eight was the first crew on the Mercer Lake waters on Saturday. Washington was the frontrunner from start to finish in the 3V8 grand final with a strong opening sprint. As the race progressed, California and Washington had a West Coast battle at the front of the pack with open water between them in the field. The third- and fourth place teams of Dartmouth and Northeastern had their own spaced out competition in the second half of the race. The Navy crew of Josey Troyer, Nick Bostock, Alex Sucato, Sam Beach, Robert Freimuth, Hill Atwell, Evan Robertson, Rory Hagerty and coxswain Alex Coleman held off the challenge of Brown University and crossed the finish line in fifth place with almost an open water advantage courtesy of 6:31.920 result. Washington claimed the prize as the fastest 3V8 in America with a time of 6:08.491.
 
"Our third varsity had the best result of the weekend, finishing fifth in the grand final among some perennial powerhouses. It's a young boat with two novice freshmen on board, so we are very proud of their development as a group and determination as a unit to finish in the top five."
 
A little over a half hour later, the attention at Mercer Lake turned to the second varsity eight crew division. Navy's 2V8 was competing in the petite final alongside, George Washington, Brown, Stanford, Navy, Wisconsin and Cornell. In a competitive final with positions seven through 12 up for grabs, the Mids were thick in the pack throughout most of the race as the top-four boats separated itself from Wisconsin and Cornell who were slightly off the pace. As the race progressed, G.W. pulled away for the 3.840-second victory at 6:37.970. Navy came in fourth in the petite final to rank 10th overall in the nation with a time of 6:47.148. Stanford overtook Navy for third by 2.412 seconds. The Mids' 2V8 crew consisted of Mark Ostrowski, Ian Dennis, Jerra Ewing, Carey Hutchens, Claudio Montero, Griffin Hamilton, Aidan Leavy, Jack Gill and coxswain Tiffany Johnstone.
 
In the highlighted first varsity eight competition, Navy found itself racing in the petite final. The Mids went wire-to-wire in the middle of the pack with the Brown University Bears and the Wisconsin Badgers as the Boston University Terriers and Princeton broke away in the first and second place positions. Jockeying throughout the 2,000 meters with those two teams, Brown finished third overall in the final at 6:14.877, 4.412 seconds ahead of Navy, who clocked in at 6:19.289. The Mids were able to hold off the fifth-place Badgers, who finished with a 6:21.003 result. By placing fourth in the petite final, Navy completes the season ranked 10th in the nation. The young crew with no seniors consists of Reed Schilb, Billy Duffy, Luke Phelan, James Walsh, Griffin Dunne, Will Geib, James Sills, James Pushner and coxswain Matt Catanoso.
 
"Both our varsity and second varsity crews had solid finals, they performed well but we know there is another step this group can take to reach the next level. They are hungry to train harder and focused on improving as a program."
 
The final action for Navy on Mercer Lake on Saturday was the first varsity four petite final. The Mids broke out with a fast trio of crews in the form of Georgetown and Wisconsin. The Hoyas held off all comers and eventually won the race with a time of 7:09.088. The Mids and Badgers went stroke-for-stroke down the stretch with Navy edging Wisconsin by 0.692, 7:13.259 to 7:13.951. That result helps the Mids' V4 rank ninth in the nation. Senior M.J. Duffy led the crew the quintet of Connor Feeley, Joseph Colley, William Wright and coxswain Zack Shieh.
 
"Our varsity four had the best effort of the day, sprinting through a strong Wisconsin crew to finish second in the petite final. Senior M.J. Duffy led the charge in the last 500 meters to cap off an amazing career as a Navy oarsman."
 
At the conclusion of the three-day national competition, Washington was atop the podium with an event-high 360 team points on the strength of the Huskies' V8 event victory. That classification win helped Washington pass California and Dartmouth, who placed second and third overall with respective point totals 344 and 340. Northeastern (314) and Brown (277) rounded out the top-five. Navy was just 10 points back in sixth place at 267.. In total, 30 programs were in action at this year's iteration of the IRA National Championship.
 
"A sixth place team finish is something these athletes should be proud of. We had another 40 athletes at home that contributed to our program's speed this year. It was a group effort and a solid performance that we hope to build upon in the future."
 
Results
 
First Varsity Eight
Petite Final
Boston Univ. – 6:08.820
Princeton – 6:11.711
Brown – 6:14.877
Navy – 6:19.289  *10th in the Nation
Wisconsin – 6:21.003
George Washington – 6:23.643
 
Second Varsity Eight
Petite Final
George Washington – 6:37.970
Brown – 6:41.810
Stanford – 6:44.736
Navy – 6:47.148  *10th in the Nation
Wisconsin – 6:51.073
Cornell – 6:53.299
 
Third Varsity Eight
Grand Final
Washington – 6:08.491
California – 6:11.308
Dartmouth – 6:23.086
Northeastern – 6:26.108
Navy – 6:31.920  *Fifth in the Nation
Brown – 6:35.154
 
Varsity Four
Petite Final
Georgetown – 7:09.088
Navy – 7:13.259  *Ninth in the Nation
Wisconsin – 7:13.951
Cornell – 7:20.579
Drexel – 7:28.442
Fairfield – 7:29.145


Boat Lineups
 

	First Varsity Eight	Second Varsity Eight	Third Varsity Eight
1	Reed Schilb	Mark Ostrowski	Josey Troyer
2	Billy Duffy	Ian Dennis	Nick Bostock
3	Luke Phelan	Jerra Ewing	Alex Sucato
4	James Walsh	Carey Hutchens	Sam Beach
5	Griffin Dunne	Claudio Montero	Robert Freimuth
6	Will Geib	Griffin Hamilton	Hill Atwell
7	James Sills	Aidan Leavy	Evan Robertson
Str.	James Pushner	Jack Gill	Rory Hagerty
Cox.	Matt Catanoso	Tiffany Johnstone	Alex Coleman

 

	First Varsity Four
1	William Wright
2	Joseph Colley
3	Connor Feeley
4	M.J. Duffy
Cox.	Zack Shieh