OAK RIDGE, Tenn. – The Navy women's rowing program completed its first weekend of collegiate racing this spring with five more competitive heats on Sunday morning at the 2023 Oak Ridge Cardinal Invite. Racing down a 2,000-meter course on Melton Lake, the Mids were matched up on Sunday versus No. 5 Yale, R/V Wisconsin and Notre Dame. At the conclusion of the action, Navy had recorded a pair of runner-up finishes from its 2V8 and 3V8 crews and two more third-place outcomes from its V4 and 2V4 crews.
The first Navy crew on the water on Sunday was the third varsity eight in a three-team heat at 8:30 a.m. Going shoulder-to-shoulder with Notre Dame and Wisconsin, the Mids finished just 3.277 seconds behind the first-place Fighting Irish by a final margin of 7:00.632 versus 7:03.909. The Mids were over 12 seconds faster than the Badgers, who clocked in with a 7:16.456.
Next up was a four-crew showdown in the first varsity eight classification. While the fifth-ranked Yale Bulldogs dominated the field with a 16-plus second margin of victory by posting a 6:21.034 time, Navy found itself in a tight battle down the stretch with Wisconsin and Notre Dame as second through fourth place were separated by only 4.573 seconds. At the conclusion of the heat, the Badgers held on for second place at 6:37.059, while the Fighting Irish edged the Mids, 6:39.834 to 6:41.632.
The third contest of the morning slate involved the first varsity fours. Over the 2,000 meters of racing, the four crews slowly separated from each other as Yale cruised to a 22-second victory with a final time of 7:01.230. Navy came in third behind Notre Dame (7:23.303) with a 7:29.305 effort. The Mids were over nine seconds faster than the Badgers' entry, who finished at 7:38.405.
The second half of the five-race series kicked off with the four teams all competing in a second varsity eight contest. After Yale clocked in with a victorious 6:21.473 result, Navy and Wisconsin finished in a near dead-heat that required a photo finish review. Following a post-race assessment, the Mids captured second place with a time of 6:45.316, just 0.543 seconds ahead of the Badgers' 6:45.859. Notre Dame finished almost 10 seconds off the pace with a 6:55.040 final time.
The last race of the two-day event for Navy was a second varsity four competition. Similar to the earlier first varsity four race, the four boats slowly broke away from each other and all finished with over eight seconds of separation in between each position. Yale was the class of the field with a first-place time of 7:16.979, while Notre Dame posted a 7:37.661 time. Navy had the third-fastest time in the heat with a 7:48.368 outcome. Wisconsin rounded out the grouping with a time of 7:56.805.
"After a fantastic week of training we had the chance to lineup against some great competition to start our spring season," remarked head coach
Joe Schlosberg. "We had the opportunity to try some different things, move some people around, learn and make adjustments as we continue to work on making our boats go as fast as we can.
"I'm excited about the growth that has been shown and look forward to the growth and speed to come as we head into our championship season."
Navy will pick up early season action in two weeks at the Doc Hosea Invitational on Saturday, April 1 in Cherry Hill, N.J.
Results
First Varsity Eight
Yale – 6:21.034
Wisconsin – 6:37.059
Notre Dame – 6:39.834
Navy – 6:41.632
Second Varsity Eight
Yale – 6:21.473
Navy – 6:45.316
Wisconsin – 6:45.859
Notre Dame – 6:55.040
Third Varsity Eight
Notre Dame – 7:00.632
Navy – 7:03.909
Wisconsin – 7:16.456
First Varsity Four
Yale – 7:01.230
Notre Dame – 7:23.303
Navy – 7:29.305
Wisconsin – 7:38.405
Second Varsity Four
Yale – 7:16.979
Notre Dame – 7:37.661
Navy – 7:48.368
Wisconsin – 7:56.805
Boat Lineups
