ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Faced with the challenge of wind gusts up to 20 mph and choppy waters over nearly half the 2,000-meter course on Saturday morning, the No. 3 Navy lightweight rowing team split its home meet with No. 7 Columbia. Going head-to-head with the Lions (0-3) over a three-race slate on the Severn River, the Mids (1-2) dropped the first two contests, but most importantly came away with a first varsity eight victory to retain the Whatever-It-Takes (WIT) Cup over the Lions.
Competing in reverse order on Saturday, the third varsity eight contest kicked off the action. The third crews from Columbia and Navy were close throughout the 2,000 meters and saw the Mids make their move into the lead right near the midway point. Heading into the treacherous and rough final stretch of water along the Naval Academy seawall, the Lions were able to come from behind and edge the Mids out at the finish line by 2.5 seconds, 6:18.1 to 6:20.6. Navy's fourth varsity crew also participated in this race and came in less than three seconds off of the pace of its brethren in the third boat with a final mark of 6:23.5.
In the second varsity eight race, Columbia controlled the majority of the action and had an answer for each of Navy's pushes. Strong down the stretch, the Lions clocked in 4.1 seconds faster than the Mids with a final 6:11.9 to 6:16.0 outcome.
Trailing the overall meet, 2-0, Navy turned all of its focus to the first varsity eight contest with the WIT Cup on the line. An extremely close and competitive bout that saw the two rival boats separated by one-to-two seats throughout the first 1,500 meters was turned upside down when Columbia caught a crab down the seawall and lost all of its momentum. Keeping its respective pace, Navy pulled away over the final quarter of the race and won by a 5.0-second margin, 5:55.0 to 6:00.0.
"It was yet another weekend where the conditions were challenging, to say the least," remarked head coach
Shawn Bagnall. "The last 500 meters of the course along the Hospital Point seawall were pretty churned-up throughout the morning. Some of our crews handled that better than others. The 3V had a heck of a race, battling seat-for-seat and moving in the back-half of the race. Unfortunately, they stumbled a bit on the seawall and had to settle for 2nd place. The 1V also rowed with a tremendous amount of poise. We are proud of how that new lineup trained this week with very little water time and 12-Week exams. Our belief is that our team as a whole has yet to put together their best races, but we're excited by the challenge to work as a team to find them."
Navy will continue its regular season action next Saturday with a road meet in Washington, D.C. against Georgetown. The competition is scheduled for an approximate 9:00 a.m. start on April 15.
Race Results
First Varsity Eight
Navy - 5:55.0
Columbia - 6:00.0
Second Varsity Eight
Columbia - 6:11.9
Navy - 6:16.0
Third Varsity Eight
Columbia - 6:18.1
Navy 3V - 6:20.6
Navy 4V - 6:23.5
Boat Lineups
