PHILADELPHIA, Pa.  - George Mason rowing displayed a strong start to the Aberdeen Dad Vail Regatta on Friday with three of four boats advancing to the semifinals on Saturday. The 73^rd annual event is being raced on the Schuylkill River.

Mason opened the day with the varsity eight placing third in its preliminary heat with a time of 06:59.02. With the third-place finish, the Patriots just missed the automatic advancement into the semifinals as the top two boats earned the automatic berth, but sealed their spot in the semifinals with a second-place finish in the repechage later in the afternoon. Mason finished behind Dayton with a time of 07:09.46.

The novice four was the next boat to earn a qualifying spot in the semifinals as the Patriots placed second in a time of 08:26.54 behind Army. Mason's novice eight missed an advancement finishing fourth in its heat crossing the finish line in a time of 07:44.11.

The second varsity eight closed out the day for Mason recording a fourth-place finish in its heat. With four boats earning an automatic berth into the semifinals, the Patriots advanced with a time of 07:30.51. Bucknell took the heat in 07:09.30.

In the semifinal round on Saturday, the novice four will get racing underway for Mason at 7:00 a.m. Following the novice four will be the second varsity eight launching at 10:01 a.m. in lane six. The varsity eight will follow with a launch time of 10:20 a.m., also in lane six. The top two boats in the novice four and varsity eight will advance to the final, while the top three boats in the second varsity eight earn a final spot.