GOLD RIVER, Calif. – The Navy lightweight rowing team concluded its racing at the 2026 IRA National Championship on Sunday with its top two crews taking one final trip down the 2,000-meter course on Lake Natoma. The Mids' second varsity eight boat highlighted the day of action as it challenged the nation's best in the classification's grand final.
The first boat on the water on Sunday was Navy's second varsity eight crew of
Jacob Harvey (Fr., Pittsburgh, Pa.),
Emmett Sullivan (So., Whitefish Bay, Wisc.),
Chris Binney (Sr., Atlanta, Ga.),
Alexander Kaiser (So., Belmont, Calif.),
Charlie Conroy (Fr., Bethesda, Md.),
Max Gomez (Jr., Cohasset, Mass.),
Sam Rembold (Jr., Beaufort, S.C.),
Tanner Hamilton (Sr., Paradise Valley, Ariz.) and coxswain
Devin Ratte (Sr., Wake Forest, N.C.). Racing as one of six teams in the grand final, the Mids found themselves in the middle of the pack through the opening 500 meters of action. At the mid-way point, the standings saw Harvard, Penn and Princeton at the top within 2.82 seconds of each other. A few seats down from Princeton came the trio of Dartmouth, Georgetown and Navy.
Sitting in sixth with just over three minutes of racing to go, the Mids picked up their pace and pulled within 0.15 seconds of the fifth-place Hoyas and 0.70 seconds of the fourth-place Big Green. The battle for fourth place raged on down the stretch as all of the teams emptied their tanks. In a dash to the finish line, Georgetown had just enough to hold off Navy by 1.825 seconds, 6:02.881 to 6:04.706. Dartmouth lost over two seconds to Navy and ended up in sixth at 6:06.111.
Harvard earned gold at 5:53.763 with Penn and Princeton garnering silver and bronze respectively
The first varsity eight closed out the action for the lightweight team in the petite final for its classification. In a tight battle between Yale, Georgetown, Yale and Columbia, the quartet was constantly jockeying for positions as the Hoyas opened out in the lead at the 500-meter mark and again at the 1,000-meter mark, though the Bulldogs were 0.42 seconds back at the halfway point, while Lions and Mids were locked in combat just a few seats off the pace.
Trailing Columbia in the fight for third place by 1.01 seconds with 1,000 meters to go Navy's crew of
Frank Keusenkothen (Sr., Reston, Va.),
Ben Lacuesta (So., Bethesda, Md.),
Gunner Williams (Jr., Belleair, Fla.),
Nani Veluchamy (Sr., Naperville, Ill.),
Decker Moy-Jacobs (Jr., Fairfax, Va.),
Noah Ferguson (Jr., El Dorado Hills, Calif.), Padraig McNamara (Sr., Philadelphia, Pa.),
John Michael Blake (So., Northfield, Ill.) and coxswain
Christian Ramos (Jr., Miami, Fla.) began making their move and nearly drew even within the next 500 meters as it was just a 0.06-seconds margin between the two squads with the finish line in sight. The Mids continued their comeback effort and won the final sprint to the line as they edged the Lions by 0.052 seconds, 6:02.742 to 6:02.794.
All four crews were in contact at the finish line as Yale won the race with a time of 5:58.549, barely ahead of Georgetown's 5:59.129. Navy's third-place result translates to ninth overall in the nation.
At the conclusion of the racing, Navy finished ninth in the team points trophy standings with 24 points. Harvard claimed the national team title as it bested Princeton by six points in the standings, 54 to 48. Dartmouth grabbed the final spot on the medal stand with 40.5 points. The rest of the top five saw Penn lose the tie-breaker with Dartmouth and finish fourth with 40.5 points ahead of Georgetown's 28.5. Cornell (27), MIT (27), Yale (25.5), Navy (24) and Columbia (18) completed the leaderboard in positions six through ten.
"The coaching staff and athletes that made up our IRA championship squad knew that we'd need to make some positive changes after the Eastern Sprints Regatta. The team embraced the opportunity as an at-large bid to continue to work hard through Commissioning Week, turning over every stone to field our best lineups at the National Championship.
"In the Varsity 4+, we saw a lineup of all walk-on athletes (no rowing prior to Navy), who were able to see the level of championship racing, and where they need to go in the coming years. The time spent in the 4+ and working on their racing ability will definitely serve us in the future. I thought they did a great job of rebounding after a heartbreaking semi-final result, and we look forward to seeing all those athletes back in the program next year.
"The 2nd Varsity had a great heat and I thought rowed an excellent final. We knew this crew would be relevant at this regatta, and while this lineup had some changes since the Sprints, they never lost faith in their ability to compete at the highest level. Special credit in that lineup and the steady leadership they provided goes to our newly-minted Officers, 2nd LT
Tanner Hamilton, ENS
Chris Binney, and ENS
Devin Ratte.
"In the Varsity 8+, we felt like the lineup changes and work that they had done put this group in contention to make some waves at the IRA. While we fell short of our internal goals, I am very proud of their work to finish higher than we were initially seeded, and for racing a gutsy final where there was no quit from the drop of the flag at the start to the sound of the horn at the finish.
"There are great things on the other side of this regatta for the Navy Lightweights. We are excited to be returning the bulk of our roster, as well as welcoming in a strong Plebe Class. However, I cannot overstate the strong impact of our outgoing Officers, and level of gratitude for the legacy they have left on our program."
Race Results
First Varsity Eight
Third of four in Petite Final
Yale – 5:58.549
Georgetown – 5:59.129
Navy – 6:02.742 **Ninth in the nation
Columbia – 6:02.794
Second Varsity Eight
Fifth of six in Grand Final
Harvard – 5:53.763
Penn – 5:55.245
Princeton – 5:58.238
Georgetown – 6:02.881
Navy – 6:04.706 **Fifth in the nation
Dartmouth – 6:06.111
Boat Lineups
