ANNAPOLIS, Md. - The Navy heavyweight rowing team heads into its penultimate regular season contest this Saturday with a three-team showdown in Boston. Racing on the historic Charles River in a matchup that has been going on for over 90 years, the No. 20 Mids (2-5) will face off with the host No. 3 Harvard Crimson (2-1) and No. 8 Penn Quakers (4-1) with the Adams and Clothier Cups on the line for the victors of the first varsity and team points competitions, respectively. The early morning action is set for a 7 a.m. initial race between the fifth varsity eight crews.
The entire slate of the Navy-Harvard-Penn tri-meet will consist of five races going off every 30 minutes down a 2,000-meter stretch of the Charles River. After the fifth varsities kick off the competition at 7:00 a.m., the Adams Cup will be up for grabs between the first varsities at 7:30 a.m. Continuing in orderly fashion, the second and third varsities will go off at 8:00 and 8:30 a.m. before the fourth varsities round out the racing at 9:00 a.m.
Saturday's racing will be broadcast 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.
Most Recent Navy-Harvard-Penn Matchup: April 27, 2024
In a showdown with three of the nation's top-11 teams racing on the Severn River on Saturday morning, No. 3 Harvard took home victories in the top three varsity eight races before No. 9 Penn and No. 11 Navy each collected one win a piece. The Crimson's success at the top of Saturday's racing slate resulted in them celebrating with the Adams Cup and Clothier Team Points Trophy at the end of the competition. The Mids' depth was showcased in their victory in the fifth varsity eight to close out the meet.
The first varsity eight crews were first on the water on Saturday morning with the Adams Cup on the line for the victor. A tough start by Navy left the Mids behind early as Harvard and Penn jockeyed for position over the first 750 meters. The Crimson took over first place before the 1,000-meter mark and never looked back as all three teams battled extremely choppy water conditions down the seawall. At the conclusion of the 2,000-meter piece, Harvard won with a time of 6:19.9, 1.6 seconds ahead of Penn. Navy clocked in third at 6:38.1.
What's at Stake
Adams Cup
The cup is awarded to the winner of the varsity eight race between Navy, Harvard and Penn. The trophy was placed into competition in 1933 and honors Charles Francis Adams, who was a Harvard graduate and former Secretary of the Navy. All-time Harvard has 58 wins, while Penn has 14 titles and Navy is one back with 13, respectively.
Clothier Cup
This will be the sixth annual race of the Clothier Trophy, which is a team points trophy for the Navy/Harvard/Penn heavyweight race. It was donated by the Navy Crews of 1984.
Last Time Out: April 19 versus Syracuse & Cornell in Annapolis
Competing on the Severn River for its only home meet of the 2025 schedule, the No. 20 Navy heavyweight rowing team faced stiff opposition from No. 9 Syracuse and No. 15 Cornell throughout Saturday's five-race slate. The highly ranked Orange collected victories from its top-four boats, while the Midshipmen were able to send their fans home happy as their sixth varsity eight pulled an upset and was victorious in the fifth varsity eight event.
The Goes Trophy contest took center stage with a three-way battle between Navy, Syracuse and Cornell's first varsity eight crews. All three boats got off to a strong start, though the Mids were the early leader with a slight advantage through the 250-meter mark. With all of the teams within striking distance of the lead, the Orange found that next gear first and broke out to an advantage before the quarter buoy and led for the final 1,500 meters of racing. Syracuse earned the Goes Trophy victory with a time of 6:07.0 ahead of Cornell at 6:13.5 and Navy at 6:19.2.
Race Schedule
7:00 AM - Fifth Varsity
7:30 AM - First Varsity
8:00 AM - Second Varsity
8:30 AM - Third Varsity
9:00 AM - Fourth Varsity
