GOLD RIVER, Calif. – The Navy heavyweight rowing team kicked off action at the 2026 IRA National Championship on Friday with its first, second and third varsity eight crews competing against the nation's best on Lake Natoma. Looking to race their way into contention for the AB semifinals on Saturday, the Mids left it all out on the water, though they came up just short of that goal with a trio of solid outings that should put them in strong position to advance out of the CD semifinals. Navy's third crew was the closest to qualifying as it came within 1.56 seconds of securing a spot in the AB semis.
Taking to the waters of Lake Natoma initially on Friday was Navy's first varsity eight entry. Racing versus a field of Princeton, Stanford, Syracuse, Cornell and La Salle, Navy was in the mix early with an excellent opening sprint and first 500 meters that clocked in third-best at 1:24.850. Recognizing the Mids' early speed, the Orange and Big Red had a strong response over the next quarter of the race and pushed ahead of the Mids by a few seats at the 1,000-meter mark. Syracuse started separating from the three-team fight for the final qualifying spot in the second half of the race and secured third place with a time of 5:43.360, 4.670 seconds ahead of Cornell's 5:48.030 and 6.350 seconds better than Navy's 5:49.710.
Princeton (5:39.360) and Stanford (5:40.960) earned the top two qualifying positions, while La Salle (5:53.650) rounded out the pack in sixth place. Navy's V8+ will continue action at Lake Natoma on Saturday in the CD semifinals starting at 12:44 p.m. ET (9:44 a.m.-local PT).
Next up for 2,000 meters of heart-racing action was the Mids' second varsity eight crew. Navy was matched up against Harvard, Northeastern, Penn, Holy Cross and Oregon State in heat number three of the classification. A solid opening sprint left the Mids in fourth place at the 500-meter mark just 0.1 seconds behind the Quakers for the all important final qualifying spot. That same alignment of Harvard, Northeastern, Penn and Navy crossed at the mid-way checkpoint, as well, though the Quakers had built out a near open-water advantage over the Mids. Penn pulled away from Navy over the final 1,000 meters of racing to secure third place by 10.7 seconds, 5:48.660 to 5:59.360. In the final standings, Holy Cross snuck in-between and edged Navy at the line to finish fourth with a 5:59.270 time.
Harvard (5:45.870) and Northeastern (5:47.460) took the top two qualifying positions, while Oregon State finished off the pace in sixth place at 6:13.450. Navy's 2V8+ will pick up the action at Saturday in its respective CD semifinal starting at 12:52 p.m. ET (9:52 a.m.-local PT).
The final Navy entry in Friday's action was its third varsity eight crew. The Mids were competing in the division's first heat race of the day against the likes of California, Penn, Northeastern and Holy Cross. Seeded first in the pod, California broke out fast and led wire-to-wire to claim the top qualifying berth. Navy was competitive throughout the 2,000-meter piece and constantly found itself within striking distant of third place. At the 500-meter mark, Navy was sitting fourth, though within 1.5 seconds of second-place Penn and less than a second behind third-place Northeastern. That combination of Penn, Northeastern and Navy carried through the next 1,000 meters as the teams clocked in at the 1,500-meter checkpoint at 4:25.120, 4:26.250 and 4:28.310, respectively. Pressing down the stretch, the Mids nearly nabbed the final qualifying position from the Huskies, but came 1.56 seconds shy, 5:56.710 to 5:58.270.
The top of the leaderboard saw Cal (5:52.000) and Penn (5:54.750) go one-two, while Holy Cross rounded out the field in fifth at 6:07.860. Navy's 3V8+ will be back at it tomorrow in its respective CD semifinal starting at 1:08 p.m. ET (10:08 a.m-local PT).
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Race Results
First Varsity Eight
Fifth of Six in Heat 4
Princeton – 5:39.360
Stanford – 5:40.960
Syracuse – 5:43.360
Cornell – 5:48.030
Navy – 5:49.710
La Salle – 5:53.650
   Next Up: CD Semifinals – Saturday, 12:44 p.m.
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Second Varsity Eight
Fifth of Six in Heat 3
Harvard – 5:45.870
Northeastern – 5:47.460
Penn – 5:48.660
Holy Cross – 5:59.270
Navy – 5:59.360
Oregon State – 6:13.450
   Next Up: CD Semifinals – Saturday, 12:52 p.m.
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Third Varsity Eight
Fourth of five in Heat 1
Cal – 5:52.000
Penn – 5:54.750
Northeastern – 5:56.710
Navy – 5:58.270
Holy Cross – 6:07.860
   Next Up: CD Semifinals – Saturday, 1:08 p.m.
Boat Lineups
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