MIT Women's Lightweight Crew Secures Bronze at IRA National Championship

The MIT women's lightweight crew team successfully advanced to the Grand Finals in three events at the 2026 IRA National Championship regatta on Lake Natoma. Leading the Engineers, the Varsity 4+ boat secured a bronze medal with a time of 07:31.483, marking the program's second-straight trip to the podium. In the Lightweight 2x event, Avery Reischer-Craft and Katherine Wei mounted a fierce comeback in the final 500 meters, ultimately missing the podium by less than a second to finish fourth. Meanwhile, the Varsity 8+ boat rounded out the weekend's championship racing with a sixth-place finish against a competitive field. Following their performance in California, the Engineers will shift their focus to international competition at the Henley Women's Regatta in England later this month.