LEONIA, N.J. – The No. 2 Navy lightweight rowing team had a standout day of competition on Saturday with a clean sweep of seven combined races versus No. 5 Georgetown and No. 7 Columbia at Overpeck Park. Taking on the Lions in a series of four races in the morning and the Hoyas in three more in the afternoon, the Mids collected seven wins with each victory coming by two or more seconds. Navy will return to Hubbard Hall with a pair of trophies as the program's first varsity defeated Columbia for the WIT Cup and Georgetown for the Forster Cup.
 
The action on Saturday began with Navy and Columbia racing in a fourth varsity four-man crew event. With two entries in the race, the Mids' top boat crossed the finish line with a winning time of 6:55.178 versus a 7:00.994 for the Lions. Navy's 'B' boat completed the 2,000-meter race with a 7:06.306 time.
 
Eight-man crews from Navy and Columbia took to the water next. The third varsities turned in the closest matchup of the morning as the Mids and Lions battled to a 2.293-second margin with Navy coming out on top, 6:06.217 to 6:08.510.
 
The Mids increased their margin of victory in the ensuing second varsity eight race as Navy turned a winning time of 5:56.979, while Columbia clocked in at 6:00.271.
 
With the Whatever-It-Takes (WIT) Cup on the line for the victor of the first varsity eight competition, Navy withstood Columbia's best efforts and held on for a 3.534-second margin of victory, 5:41.646 to 5:45.180.
 
After a perfect four-for-four outing versus Columbia, Navy rested for a little over five hours before heading back out on the waters of Overpeck Park beginning at 3:40 p.m. for a three-race slate of contests against Georgetown. Similar to the morning, four-man crews led off the docket of races. In the varsity four event, Navy's 'A' and 'B' boats cruised to a sweep of the top-two spots with times of 6:52.50 and 7:01.00, respectively. Georgetown's crew placed third with a 7:06.60 result.
 
In the next event, the second varsity eight competition, Navy had both its 2V8 and 3V8 crews racing against Georgetown's 2V8. The Mids repeated their one-two performance from the previous race as the Mids' 2V8 was in complete control and defeated their Blue and Gold brethren by nearly nine seconds, 5:55.50 to 6:04.40. The Hoyas' 2V8 was well off the pace and clocked in third at 6:13.60.
 
In the final race of the day with the Forster Cup up for grabs, Navy's first varsity eight left nothing up to chance and knocked off Georgetown by 4.2 seconds. The Mids' top crew recorded a victorious time of 5:51.80. The Hoyas finished with a 5:56.00 time.

"I am really proud of our entire team today, especially in the 4V8+ group, that broke down into two very competitive 4+'s on late notice," remarked head coach Shawn Bagnall. "We don't take successful days like today for granted, especially in our league, knowing just how fast each of our competitors are. We are blessed and fortunate to have some great leadership in this squad, that helped focus this team for the afternoon racing following some hard fought victories in the morning. It was a good rehearsal for the effort that will be required at the Eastern Sprints, and we continue to look for improvement in every phase of our racing as we ready for the opportunities ahead this spring. 

"My thanks and gratitude to the Columbia University coaching staff for helping us get our Forster Cup racing in with Georgetown, as well as the US Rowing officials that stepped in to support."
 
Navy will be away from action for two weeks before hosting Harvard and Delaware on Saturday, April 23 on the Severn River.
 
Results
Morning Session
First Varsity Eight – WIT Cup
Navy – 5:41.646
Columbia – 5:45.180
 
Second Varsity Eight
Navy – 5:56.979
Columbia – 6:00.271
 
Third Varsity Eight
Navy – 6:06.217
Columbia – 6:08.510
 
Fourth Varsity Four
Navy V4A – 6:55.178
Columbia – 7:00.994
Navy V4B – 7:06.306
 
Afternoon Session
First Varsity Eight - Forster Cup
Navy – 5:51.80
Georgetown – 5:56.00
 
Second Varsity Eight
Navy – 5:55.50
Navy 3V8 – 6:04.40
Georgetown 2V8 – 6:13.60
 
Fourth Varsity Four
Navy V4A – 6:52.50
Navy V4B – 7:01.00
Georgetown – 7:06.60

Boat Lineups

	First Varsity Eight	Second Varsity Eight	Third Varsity Eight
1	Owen O'Malley	Charlie Goodrich	J.J. McCarthy
2	Mason Banks	Jonathan Sauer	Will Jarrett
3	Stephen Frost	Jack Spector	Robby Klanac
4	Robert Sherman	Matt Ross	Matt Fox
5	Myles Knight	Joshua Freitas	Lucas Schatz
6	Andy Laberee	Connor Rex	Sam Sheridan
7	Brooks Kirchen	Oliver Hasler	Aaron Xing
Str.	Jackson Fuller	Seamus Tomb	Andrew Fichtel
Cox.	Jack Ransick	Stephen Scholl	Kyle Jung

 

	Fourth Varsity Four 'A'	Fourth Varsity Four 'B'
1	Brycen Groess	James Waaler
2	Colby MaGill	Jack Moroney
3	Jonathan Greenberg	Colson Poillucci
Str.	David Jackson	Riley Guerrera
Cox.	Charlie Francesconi	Wester Gapasangra