BOSTON – Rising senior Braden Porterfield won gold with the US 4+, and rising sophomore Ed Lopas won bronze with the NZ 4- to highlight three student-athletes from the Northeastern men's rowing team who closed out competition at the U23 World Rowing Championships in St. Catharines, Canada.
 
"It was a great two days of racing at the U23 championships with three Huskies competing (Mark, Braden, Ed)," said head coach Alex Perkins. "Braden and his teammates secured the world championship in the coxed 4 for the USA yesterday, and today Ed won a bronze medal in the 4- for NZ in an incredibly tight race! We are proud of the efforts that they both put forward this summer and congratulate them on taking home two medals from the World Championships!"
 
Porterfield and the US 4+ went up against Italy, France, Australia, and Germany. The crew had a dominant performance, leading the field down the course, and winning by open water ahead of second-place Italy (6:19.71) with a time of 6:15.55. The victory marked Team USA's first gold in the event since 2018. 
 
Lopas and the NZ 4- battled against Great Britain, Australia, France, Italy and Romania. In a tight race through the first 1000 meters, the crew kept pace with Italy, Great Britain, and Australia. The boat maintained control of third place down the stretch, and crossed the line at 5:47.01, just ahead of France (5:47.84).
 
Incoming freshman Mark Kakoma also competed in the Zambia 1x, finishing in the D final with a time of 7:36.92.