ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Coming off of a stellar 2022 campaign that saw the program finish in a tie for first place in the team standings at the IRA National Championship before dropping a dramatic tie-breaker for the trophy, the Navy lightweight rowing team will be out to avenge that tough outcome in 2023. First up as part of a six-race regular season is a Saturday morning road matchup at Princeton. The showdown between the No. 1 Tigers and No. 5 Mids will be hosted at Lake Carnegie with the fourth varsity eights racing in the initial contest starting at 10:45 a.m. The four-race meet will culminate at 11:30 a.m. with the Murtaugh Cup on the line.

The entire slate of racing will go in reverse order as the third varsity eights will follow-up the fourth varsities at 11:00 a.m. 15 minutes later, the second varsity crews from Navy and Princeton will go shoulder-to-shoulder down the 2,000-meter stretch of Lake Carnegie before the headlining Murtaugh Cup trophy race at 11:30 a.m. 

Princeton will be streaming Saturday's action on the ESPN+ platform. ESPN+ is a subscription-based streaming service that requires patrons to sign-up for monthly or yearly plans prior to tuning into the contest.

Class of 2023
Navy will be led by a deep 13-man senior class. Connor Rex (Alexandria, Va.) was selected in the offseason and has been serving since as the team's captain during this 2022-23 school year. Rex, Jackson Fuller (Winter Park, Fla.), Jonathan Greenberg (Providence, R.I.), Oliver Hasler (Duluth, Minn.), Matt Ross (Anchorage, Alaska), Lucas Schatz (Wrightwood, Calif.) and Stephen Scholl (Annapolis, Md.) all suited up for the Mids at the IRA National Championships last May. Fuller raced with Navy's first varsity eight at the year-end regatta, while Hasler, Rex, Ross and Scholl were members of the first-place finishing second varsity eight. Greenberg and Schatz also claimed gold from their racing in the victorious first varsity four boat.

Most Recent Navy-Princeton Matchup: March 26, 2022
Coming into the season with extremely high expectations, the Navy lightweight crew team had a stellar start to its 2022 campaign as the Mids swept the Princeton Tigers in a three-race slate of contests on Saturday, March 26. Racing on a 2,000-meter stretch of the Severn River, the Mids earned a pair of five-plus second victories by its second and third varsity crews before capturing their third win over the Tigers with a 1.4-second decision in the first varsity competition with the Murtaugh Cup on the line. 

With the conditions getting tougher and the chop and wind increasing over the morning regatta, the teams left it all out on the water in the day's final race, the first varsity eight event. Racing for the right to take home the Murtaugh Cup, Navy posted a time of 6:02.3, while Princeton was 1.4 seconds back at 6:03.7.
 
That victory by the Mids' V8 gave them possession of the Murtaugh Cup for the first time since 2017. The victory also clinched the three-race sweep of the Tigers for the first time since 2008.

Murtaugh Cup History
Named after the former Princeton and U.S. lightweight rowing coach Joseph Murtaugh, the trophy has been on the line between the Mids and Tigers since 2008. After Navy won the initial competition in 2008, Princeton countered with eight straight victories in the first varsity eight race until the Mids climbed back on top in 2017. All-time, Princeton leads the Murtaugh Cup series, 10-3.

Race Schedule
10:45 AM - Fourth Varsity Eight
11:00 AM - Third Varsity Eight
11:15 AM - Second Varsity Eight
11:30 AM - First Varsity Eight - Murtaugh Cup

Best Place for Spectators to View Racing:
Carnegie Lake Race Course Finish Line
875 Princeton Kingston Rd, Princeton, NJ 08540