May 12, 2007

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - Both of the Villanova entries in the heavyweight eight races have advanced to the semifinals in racing on Saturday at the Dad Vail Regatta. The Wildcats opened competition a day earlier at the nation's largest collegiate regatta, a two kilometer course on the Schuylkill River along Kelly Drive.

The varsity heavyweight eight boat crossed in a time of 7:05.94 in heats held on Friday morning, good enough to advance to reps later in the day. There, the squad improved its time to 7:03.4 to finish second and advance to the semifinals. The semifinal race will be held at 10:30 on Saturday morning.

Meanwhile, the freshman/novice heavyweight eight entry will be competing in the finals on Saturday afternoon. The freshman boat had a time of 7:19.12 to place third in its initial heat and then posted a greatly improved time of 6:57.38 in the semifinals early on Saturday. The freshman/novice heavyweight eight entries are competing for the Sara Vaughan Trophy, and Villanova will race in the finals at 1:30 p.m. Saturday afternoon. The Wildcats finished second in their semifinal heat to qualify for the finals.

Also in preliminary action on Friday were the varsity heavyweight and lightweight four boats, which each placed fifth in their respective heats. The heavyweight four boat posted a time of 8:35.37 while the lightweight squad came in with a time of 8:21.39.