WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. - After finishing third overall during the National Invitational Rowing Championship (NIRC)/NESCAC Championship Sunday on Lake Quinsigamond in Worcester, Massachusetts, the No. 4-ranked Williams College men's crew team earned one of the automatic qualifiers into the Intercollegiate Rowing Association (IRA) Division III National Championship on May 29-30 at Lake Natoma in Gold River, California.
There will be a total of eight teams competing at the IRA National Championship, as No. 2 Wesleyan and No. 3 Trinity earned the automatic bids out of the NESCAC, placing first and second, respectively during the NIRC/NESCAC Championship. Williams earned the automatic qualifier by being the highest NIRC finisher not receiving a NESCAC bid. Top-ranked Tufts, No. 5 Bates and No. 7 Colby earned at-large bids, while No. 6 Marietta and No. 10 Ithaca earned the automatic qualifiers out of the Mid-Atlantic Rowing Conference (MARC) and Liberty League, respectively.
The Ephs won the IRA National Championship in 2022 and 2023, while finishing second and third, respectively, in 2024 and 2025. Williams recently also hoisted NESCAC Championships in three straight years from 2021-23, while placing first at the NIRC Championship and New England Championships in 2022 and 2023. Williams leads the NESCAC with 11 all-time conference championships.
