ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Rising senior Reagan Quilty has been selected as the first team captain of the women's triathlon team as a varsity program, head coach Billy Edwards announced Thursday.
 
Quilty enters her fourth year competing for Navy triathlon. She was a key member of the 2022 squad that finished fourth in the Women's Club National Championship.
 
"I'm honored to have the opportunity to lead these women in our first year as a varsity team. I couldn't have asked for a greater opportunity than to have a chance to help shape the trajectory of Navy women's triathlon, which has the potential to develop into a highly successful program," said Quilty. "We are an extremely close team of hard workers who are committed to each other and I'm excited to see how we perform in our upcoming season and beyond."
 
Quilty has been competing in triathlon since she was four years old and started in draft legal events at 13 years old. The St. Petersburg, Fla., native began racing with High Performance Team Z3 Multisport in 2015. She helped Z3 win four-consecutive national championships (2015-18) and earned All-America honors three times (2016, '17, '18).
 
"Reagan is a natural leader and a student of the sport of triathlon. She has grown up around the sport, knows how to race and has been an asset to the team since she came onto the club team as a freshman," said head coach Billy Edwards. "When deciding how quickly our club team could move to varsity, I intentionally pushed to start this fall because our senior leaders, Reagan and Sara (Jarman), have raced draft legal since they were in high school.
 
"Triathlon is a sport which requires independent thinking and quick smart decisions on the road. Reagan is able to do this for herself, but more importantly, leads her teammates in training and races with the same confidence. My excitement for the first year as a varsity triathlon team is built on having such a solid leader like Reagan in place as our team captain."
 
Quilty is majoring in political science and has earned USNA academic honors in three semesters. Her father, Chris, competed in sprint football and her mother, Karen, was a member of the women's crew team at Navy. Both parents are members of the class of 1989. Her older brother, Zach, competed in football and rugby and was a 2020 graduate of the Academy. He is currently serving as a submarine officer.
 
Women's triathlon beings its season Sept. 3 with the Wingate Bulldog Super Sprint Kickoff in Wingate, N.C.