St. Joseph’s Prep boys, Mount St. Joseph girls varsity eight in the running to win at Stotesbury Cup Regatta
After time trials on Friday, the senior eight boat for St. Joe's Prep boys was in first place, while the Mount Saint Joseph Academy girls senior eight boat was second in their respective events.
The usual landmarks of Boathouse Row were joined by an array of colorful tents further down Kelly Drive, representing high school crew teams from all over the country on Friday.
Over 4,000 athletes from 160 schools made their way to the 1,500-meter race course on the Schuylkill River for the 99th annual Stotesbury Cup Regatta.
The world’s largest scholastic rowing regatta is held annually on the Schuylkill, starting just north of the Strawberry Mansion Bridge with the finish just north of the Columbia Bridge. The athlete village and food and merchandising vendors were set up Friday along the trail on Kelly Drive. Time trials and a few semifinals took place on Friday, while Saturday’s action will include the remaining semifinal races in the morning and the final races in the afternoon.
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And all of this takes place less than two miles from where the FIFA Fan Fest will be held this summer, on Lemon Hill.
The regatta, which hosts thousands of people including athletes, vendors, and spectators , is serving as a kickoff of sorts for the summer ahead, said Bonnie Mueller, the Schuylkill Navy’s president.
“This summer of 2026 is a historical moment for both our nation and our city,” Mueller said. “We are so proud as the Schuylkill Navy to be running an event of this size and scale, just as we begin this unique season of world-class competition and sport.”
Run entirely each year by unpaid volunteers, Mueller said the “civic service” of these volunteers brings people from all over to Philly for the events, which is nearly three times larger than the Dad Vail Regatta, which was held last week on the Cooper River in Pennsauken.
“The reality is that the Schuylkill Navy, together with our partners from the head of the Schuylkill Regatta and the Philadelphia Scholastic Rowing Association continue to run regattas of much greater size and scale year after year in full cooperation with Mayor [Cherelle] Parker’s administration and our many partners throughout,” Mueller said.
The regatta, the largest of the five signature events the Schuylkill Navy of Philadelphia hosts each year, welcomed many local high school crews, but also included teams from Canada and the Midwest.
Still, historically, local teams have the most success.
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St. Joseph’s Prep, currently in the middle of a coaching change, won the senior eight race on the boys side in 2024, while also going back-to-back on taking home the most medals in 2024 and 2023.
Last year, the event was canceled due to swelling waters on Saturday, and the top finishers were named based on time trials. The St. Joe’s Prep boys’ eight senior boat also won last year’s event.
On the girls side, Montclair High School of New Jersey finished first in the 2025 time trials with Mount St. Joseph Academy coming in second.
Mount St. Joseph’s girls crew has finished in the top two every year over the last four years, winning the event in 2022 and 2024. They remain a favorite going into the 2026 race, after finishing second in the time trial on Friday with a time of 5 minutes, 6.56 seconds. The reigning champion, Montclair finished first in the time trials again this year, over a second and a half ahead of Mount St. Joseph (5:04.93). Philadelphia City Rowing (5:20.51) and Merion Mercy Academy (5:24.38) are among the local teams that will also be competing in the girls semifinals.
St. Joe’s Prep once again finished in the lead after the boys’ time trial with a 4:21.65 finish, remaining a favorite ahead of Day 2 of the regatta. Montclair trailed with a 4:23.32. New Jersey’s St. Augustine Prep (4:47.36) made it through to Saturday’s semifinals.
The semifinals for the girls’ and boys’ senior eight boats will take place Saturday morning with the first of the three boys’ semifinals beginning at 11:45 a.m. The three semifinals for the girls will follow, starting at noon.
The boys’ senior eight final for the Edward T. Stotesbury Cup will take place at 5:07 p.m. on Saturday and the girls’ senior eight final for the Robert Engman Trophy will follow at 5:16 p.m.