PHILADELPHIA, Pa. -- The women's varsity four enjoyed the most competitive race of the day as it finished second in a race that featured a one-second difference between the top three entries.

In the varsity four race, Philadelphia University ended up winning the heat at 7:54.21, followed by Fairfield (7:55.01) and Sacred Heart (7:55.05). The Stags were edged out of a final appearance due to the number of entires in the overall event (six heats).

James Jessup and Ben Andrews captured first place in men's varsity pair. Both Fairfield entries in the event finished in the top five as the B shell took fifth place.

Andrews, who was part of last year's lightweight four champion at the Murphy Cup, joined up with Jessup to win their respective heat with a time of 7:19.0, nearly 20 seconds better than runner-up Fordham. In the other heat, Alex Papa and John Tiene posted a second-place finish by crossing the finish line in 8:14.98.

The two teams advanced to the final a few hours later and continued their dominance by being the only school to place two entries in the top five. Andrews and Jessup took first place by edging Fordham by six seconds (7:29.52), while Papa and Tiene cross the finish line at 8:04.63.

The women's novice eight secured second place in their heat by finishing the race in 7:26.25, just 10 seconds off West Virginia's winning pace. Despite the strong finish, the team did not qualify for the final. The B entry took fifth place in its race with a time of 8:12.76.

The women's second novice 8 continue to gain much needed experience at the collegiate level and have shown improvement over the last two racing weeks. Coxswain Kaitlin Dinius had the opportunity to cox her first race of the year and led the team down the river in 8:12.76.

The men's four faced a strong field of competition but still managed to hold their own in this early-season event. The team secured the fifth position by crossing the finish line in 7:06.85, 19 seconds off the winning pace set by Dowling.

The women's varsity eight finished sixth in their heat with a time of 7:26.35 which was well off Fordham's winning time of 6:49.71.

The Stags return to action locally next Saturday when they race Fordham, Sacred Heart and Army followed by Sacred Heart and Iona on Sunday in Shelton.