CHERRY HILL, N.J. – The University of Pennsylvania men's lightweight crew saw its Second Varsity Eight throw down the best time of the day in earning the preferred lane for Sunday's final, while the Varsity Eight also will race for a national title on Sunday after Friday's racing at the IRA National Championships.
 
The three-day IRA Championships are taking place this weekend on the Cooper River.

Friday's Results
1V8
The Quakers were nipped by Princeton by less than a second in a close race that saw the top three boats separated by less than two seconds. Navy was third, just behind Penn, while Georgetown was in the mix but finished fourth about three seconds behind the Midshipmen.
  Princeton 5:43.090
  Penn 5:43.880
  Navy 5:44.950
  Georgetown 5:47.110

2V8
The Quakers clocked 5:49.120, winning their heat by more than three seconds as Dartmouth, Yale and Georgetown had an incredible finish that saw those three boats finish within three-tenths of a second of each other. In the other heat, Harvard was the winner in a time that was a little less than a second slower than Penn's time.
  Penn 5:49.120
  Dartmouth 5:52.760
  Yale 5:52.940
  Georgetown 5:53.010

V4A
Penn posted the fourth-fastest time in Friday morning's time trial, and then in the afternoon semifinal the Quakers took first place in a five-boat race.
  Penn 6:26.010
  Harvard 6:28.550
  Mercyhurst 6:29.590
  Princeton 6:53.030
  Dartmouth 6:54.490
  
SATURDAY SCHEDULE | Watch Live on Overnght.com | Live Results | Penn Boatings (PDF)
2:50 p.m. - V4A Grand Final
  (lanes 1-6) Georgetown | Harvard | Columbia | Penn | Navy | Mercyhurst
SUNDAY SCHEDULE | Watch Live on Overnght.com
10:10 a.m. – 2V8 Grand Final
  (lanes 1-6) Princeton | Dartmouth | Harvard | Penn | Columbia | Yale
11:40 a.m. – 1V8 Grand Final
  (lanes 1-6) MIT | Penn | Harvard | Princeton | Dartmouth | Navy
 
For the latest on Penn men's lightweight rowing, follow @PennLwt on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram, and on the web at PennAthletics.com.