Yale Athletics

On Saturday, Yale’s lightweight crew team delivered a commanding performance at the National Collegiate Lightweight Invitational, defending the Van Amringe Cup for the third consecutive year and reclaiming the Johnson Cup in a series of fiercely contested races against Navy on Lake Carnegie.

The Bulldogs’ dominance began with the third varsity four’s race against Gordon, MIT and Mercyhurst. Yale surged ahead within the first 250 meters, widening its lead throughout the race to win convincingly by open water with a time of 6:52.50. Mercyhurst followed almost half a minute after with a time of 07:19.4, MIT with a time of 7:32.0 and Gordon with a time of 7:51.40.

In the second varsity eight face-off against Navy, both crews launched aggressively off the start, but the Bulldogs established a half-length lead within the first 500 meters. That margin steadily expanded, and by the third 500, Yale had secured open water, maintaining the gap to clinch the victory with a time of 5:52.20. Navy followed after with a time of 5:58.50.

The much-anticipated first varsity eight race, which determined the winner of the Johnson Cup, saw a thrilling battle between Yale and Navy. 

In last year’s matchup against the Naval Academy, the 1V race was tightly contested, with Navy edging out Yale by a narrow margin and securing the Johnson Cup with a time of 6:10.87 against Yale’s 6:13.14. However, the 2V and 3V boats secured first-place finishes, earning the Bulldogs the Van Amringe Cup for the highest overall team finish.

This year, in the first varsity eight race, the two crews remained neck-and-neck through the first 500 meters before Navy gained a slight edge. The Midshipmen led by three seats at the halfway mark, but Yale responded with a powerful third 500 meters, inching ahead of their rivals. The final stretch saw both teams exchanging blows stroke for stroke, with the Bulldogs ultimately edging out Navy by about a seat ahead at the finish line with a time of 5:34.30 — just 0.2 seconds before Navy.

With their varsity eight triumph, Yale secured the Johnson Cup, named after Eads Johnson Jr. ’34, a former Yale lightweight captain and U.S. Naval Reserves commander. The Bulldogs’ overall points victory earned them the Van Amringe Cup, honoring Jon Van Amringe ’70, a Yale lightweight rower who served in the U.S. Navy before coaching the Navy lightweights.

“Today’s racing was a solid start to the season, and we can’t wait to build on it,” said Jackie Weyerhaeuser ’25, who coxed the second varsity boat, to Yale Athletics.

The Bulldogs will be returning to New Jersey again to finish out the regular season on Saturday, April 26, for a matchup against Princeton and Harvard.