WEST WINDSOR, N.J. -- The Fairfield University men's rowing team completed its first day of competition at the IRA Championships on Mercer Lake. The Stags sent two crews to the championship, namely the varsity 4 and the lightweight 4. Both boats spent time on the water Friday and will continue on into the weekend after today's results.

The varsity 4 started things off for the Stags by taking sixth place in its heat, sporting a time of 7:01.87. The University of Washington won the event by crossing the finish line in 6:26.65, followed by the University of California-Berkeley, the College of the Holy Cross, Boston University, and Harvard University. The Stags were represented by William Quentin, Casey Fuller, John Imor, Lars Erickson and coxswain Matt Marshall. The varsity 4 rowed later in the afternoon in Repêchage 4 and finished in fifth place (6:53.57) behind Cal-Berkeley's winning time of 6:35.65. The Repêchage also included Brown University, Jacksonville University, and Milwaukee SE.

The lightweight 4 also competed in the morning and secured the fifth position in its heat with a time of 7:09.77. The Stags' heat also included Georgetown University, which won the race with a time of 6:32.26, the United States Naval Academy, Harvard University, and MIT. Fairfield's crew was comprised by Mark Soldatic, Gregory Coppola, Seamus O'Brien, Garrett White, and coxswain Alyssa McNally.

The Stags weekend races have not been determined as of Friday afternoon but those days and times will be posted on fairfieldstags.com when available.

Fans can follow all of the IRA championship action through the US Rowing YouTube channel.