That's what makes sense to me. Ships are designed to minimize drag going through the water. But the friction of the entire hull scraping across the bottom shoul

That's what makes sense to me. Ships are designed to minimize drag going through the water. But the friction of the entire hull scraping across the bottom should be MUCH larger and thus able to exert lots more stopping force. Also, if the ground is sloped, it will act like a ramp, lifting the ship out of the water. The loss of buoyancy means its weight will push downward on the ground below it. An increased normal force means more friction, thus more stopping ability.