RALEIGH, N.C. – The Navy women's rowing team made the most of its opportunities in its final regular season competition on Friday and Saturday as part of the Lake Wheeler Invitational. Entering five crews in action over three sessions of racing, the Mids had 15 chances to improve and make final strategic adjustments versus a fleet of 20 top-flight competitors as a lead up to next month's Patriot League Championship. At the conclusion of an action-packed weekend, Navy secured six top-four results with six more fifth-place outcomes. The Mids' first varsity eight was particularly impressive with a pair of fourths to go along with one fifth-place effort among fields of six or seven crews in each of their races.
"I'm really proud of the team and the weekend of racing that they put together," remarked head coach
Joe Schlosberg. "This invitational provided us with the opportunity to line up against some great programs. We can race, assess, adjust and try to find more speed from race to race. I feel that across the board, we were able to do that and grow as boats and as a program."
In their initial time down the course, the first varsity eight was in mix for third place throughout. With Duke and Oklahoma pulling away in the second half of the race, Navy was in contact with Louisville during the duration of the 2,000 meters before the Cardinals held on for third place by 2.76 seconds, 6:38.340 to 6:41.100. Navy clocked in ahead of Boston College and Georgetown, who finished at 6:45.590 and 6:58.420. Duke and Oklahoma led the way at 6:27.060 and 6:29.040, respectively.
In the afternoon, Navy nearly mirrored its time as it posted a 6:41.610 result that placed fifth in the field of six. Once again, the Mids found themselves in a mid-pack duel with the Cardinals though Louisville had a bit more pace and finished 3.71 seconds ahead of Navy with a 6:37.900 to cross in fourth place. The Mids defeated the Kansas Jayhawks by 4.87 seconds as they Big 12 squad recorded a 6:46.480 time. Duke collected its second V8 victory in as many races as they won the heat with a 6:26.490 effort.
The final time traversing the waters of Lake Wheeler on Saturday morning saw Navy's first varsity eight finish fourth of seven crews. Miami and Alabama, two teams ranked top-15 in the nation, made it a two-boat race for the victory as the Hurricanes held on for the victory at 6:18.810. After Oklahoma crossed third at 6:24.290, Navy found itself with an open-water margin over George Washington for fourth place with a time of 6:37.810. The Revolutionaries were 4.4 seconds back in fifth at 6:42.210. Kansas (6:43.520) and Villanova (6:43.960) rounded out the seven-team field.
Navy's second varsity eight completed three races as well against the same fields and came away with a fourth-place result and two fifths. In each case the Mids bested at least one crew for each heat. Friday morning began with Navy posting a time of 6:51.190 that ranked fourth of six crews. After a five-second break of open water behind third-place Louisville, Navy out-paced Boston College to the finish line by 1.52 seconds as the Eagles came in fifth at 6:52.710. Georgetown's 2V8 had no answer for Navy's speed and finished sixth with a 7:01.200 time.
On Friday afternoon a similar race unfolded with the top-three crews all having open-water margins over the second half of the field. Navy was right in the mix for fourth place as the Mids went one-on-one with the Louisville Cardinals for the majority of the 2,000 meters. Down the stretch the Cardinals had just a bit more speed and edged the Mids for fourth place, 6:51.020 to 6:52.050. The Kansas Jayhawks finished over three seconds behind the Mids in sixth at 6:55.670.
In the crew's final time down the waters of Lake Wheeler on Saturday morning, Navy's 2V8 and George Washington raced to a near photo finish in a battle for fourth place. While Alabama and Miami duked it out to a 0.280 margin for the heat's overall victory, Navy and GW were even closer as the Revolutionaries eeked out a 0.180-second of separation at the line ahead of the Mids, 6:47.490 to 6:47.670. Navy turned in faster times than Kansas (6:51.330) and Villanova (6:56.020) in its final race.
Navy's depth got a chance to showcase its talent in the third varsity eight ranks. Racing among a field of Duke, Boston College, Louisville and Georgetown on Friday morning, Navy placed fifth at 7:02.720, 4.02 seconds shy of Georgetown's 6:58.700 fourth-place effort. The second time down the course on Friday afternoon, the Mids improved their placement by two as they ranked third of five crews with a 7:07.390 time. They beat Louisville (7:11.250) and SMU (7:17.080) to the finish line. In the third 3V8 race of the weekend for Navy it came in fourth place in a field of six teams on Saturday morning. As the competition separated into two packs of three, the Mids resisted the efforts of the Villanova Wildcats and George Washington Revolutionaries and completed the race with a time of 7:09.534, 2.692 seconds ahead of the Wildcats (7:12.226) and 3.753 better than the Revolutionaries (7:13.287).
In the varsity four ranks, Navy entered crews in the first and second V4 classifications. The Mids' first varsity four began its series of racing on Friday with a time of 7:44.800 that placed them sixth of six teams in their heat. Coming back in the afternoon, Navy's V4 shaved over three seconds off its times, but came up short in its attempt to snag fifth place from Kansas as the Jayhawks withstood the Mids' final push by 2.49 seconds, 7:38.700 to 7:41.190. Navy's V4 continued adjusting its strategy and finally broke through in the standings on Saturday morning as the Mids were the fastest of the mid-pack and finished fourth of seven teams. Bolstered by a 12-second improvement Navy clocked in at 7:29.190 and secured fourth place over Kansas by nearly five seconds as the Jayhawks completed their respective piece at 7:33.870. George Washington (7:35.020) and Villanova (7:42.480) rounded out the field.
Navy's second varsity four crew concluded the boats in action from Annapolis this weekend. The Mids in the 2V4 attained solid results of its two days on the water with a pair of fifth-place results sandwiched around one sixth-place finish. Part of a competitive top-to-bottom heat on Friday morning, Navy was in the mix for third place until late in the second half of the race and had to settle for fifth. Georgetown grabbed third place with a time of 7:32.000, while Louisville was just over three seconds back in fourth at 7:35.150. Navy crossed in fifth place 2.31 seconds shy of Louisville at 7:37.460. The Mids out-paced Boston College (7:44.140) and West Virginia 3V4 (7:46.940) in this heat. On Friday afternoon, Navy came up 1.71 seconds shy of repeating its fifth-place result as Kansas' entry beat the Mids to the finish line, 7:41.230 to 7:42.940. Clemson finished seventh in the seven-team field at 7:46.850. Navy 2V4's best time of the weekend came on Saturday morning when the Mids laid down a time of 7:31.850 that placed them fifth of seven teams in their heat. Navy was in the fight of fourth place down the stretch though Alabama's 3V4 crew was able to hold on by 1.3 seconds with a 7:30.550 result. The Mids were faster than the Jayhawks (7:32.230) and Revolutionaries (7:48.990) in the competition.
"We are making a lot of little steps forward and they are starting to really add up, which is perfect as we now move into final exams and then the Patriot League Championship. We are all excited about what lies ahead!"
Navy will now turn its attention to final exams and the Patriot League Championship. After focusing on their academics over the next two weeks, the Mids will fight for the right to secure the automatic qualifying berth to represent the Patriot League at the NCAA Championship. The league regatta in Pennsauken, New Jersey is set for Friday, May 15.
Race Results
First Varsity Eight
Session 1
Duke – 6:27.060
Oklahoma – 6:29.040
Louisville – 6:38.340
Navy – 6:41.100
Boston College – 6:45.590
Georgetown – 6:58.420
Session 2
Duke – 6:26.490
Clemson – 6:28.140
SMU – 6:29.680
Louisville – 6:37.900
Navy – 6:41.610
Kansas – 6:46.480
Session 3
Miami - 6:18.810
Alabama - 6:19.830
Oklahoma - 6:24.290
Navy - 6:37.810
George Washington - 6:42.210
Kansas - 6:43.520
Villanova - 6:43.960
Second Varsity Eight
Session 1
Duke – 6:38.630
Oklahoma – 6:43.300
Louisville – 6:46.190
Navy – 6:51.190
Boston College – 6:52.710
Georgetown – 7:01.200
Session 2
Duke – 6:34.010
SMU – 6:39.460
Clemson – 6:44.250
Louisville – 6:51.020
Navy – 6:52.050
Kansas – 6:55.670
Session 3
Alabama - 6:25.730
Miami - 6:26.010
Oklahoma - 6:36.560
George Washington - 6:47.490
Navy - 6:47.670
Kansas - 6:51.330
Villanova- 6:56.020
First Varsity Four
Session 1
Duke – 7:16.490
Louisville – 7:24.550
Oklahoma – 7:26.230
Boston College – 7:28.620
Georgetown – 7:30.770
Navy – 7:44.800
Session 2
Duke – 7:17.830
SMU – 7:26.280
Clemson – 7:30.340
Louisville – 7:32.680
Kansas – 7:38.700
Navy – 7:41.190
Session 3
Alabama - 7:10.360
Miami - 7:17.280
Oklahoma - 7:20.160
Navy - 7:29.190
Kansas - 7:33.870
George Washington - 7:35.020
Villanova - 7:42.480
Second Varsity Four
Session 1
Duke – 7:21.360
Oklahoma – 7:23.240
Georgetown – 7:32.000
Louisville – 7:35.150
Navy – 7:37.460
Boston College – 7:44.140
West Virginia 3V4 – 7:46.940
Session 2
Duke – 7:30.710
Oklahoma 3V4 – 7:34.040
SMU – 7:34.700
Louisville – 7:38.870
Kansas – 7:41.230
Navy – 7:42.940
Clemson – 7:46.850
Session 3
Alabama 2V4 - 7:15.720
Miami - 7:16.100
Oklahoma - 7:27.010
Alabama 3V4 - 7:30.550
Navy - 7:31.850
Kansas - 7:32.230
George Washington - 7:48.990
Third Varsity Eight
Session 1
Duke – 6:51.180
Boston College – 6:51.660
Louisville – 6:54.780
Georgetown – 6:58.700
Navy – 7:02.720
Session 2
Duke – 6:58.580
Kansas – 7:00.950
Navy – 7:07.390
Louisville – 7:11.250
SMU – 7:17.080
Session 3
Alabama - 6:45.336
Miami - 6:50.709
Kansas - 6:59.257
Navy - 7:09.534
Villanova - 7:12.226
George Washington - 7:13.287
Boat Lineups
