WORCESTER, Mass. -- The Bates men's first varsity eight earned a silver medal on Sunday, highlighting the National Invitational Rowing Championship for the Bobcats.

With a second-place finish in their grand final, the men's first varsity eight achieved NESCAC runner-up status for Bates, as well as an automatic bid to the IRA National Championship, which is taking place May 29-31 in Camden, N.J.

On the women's side, the Bobcats earned a pair of medals, with both the third and fourth varsity eights finishing third in their respective grand finals. Meanwhile, the women's first varsity eight placed fourth in their grand final, leaving them on the bubble for the NCAA Championships. The Bobcats find out their fate on Tuesday.

"Racing was incredibly tight in both V8s with only tenths of seconds between 2nd and 4th places," head coach Peter Steenstra said. "Both varsity eights stepped up when we needed them the most and had outstanding performances today - performances good enough to earn an AQ for the men and put the women in contention for an at-large bid to their respective national championship regattas. It was a truly impressive display of why the NESCAC is at the top of D3 rowing." 

The Bates women's and men's teams scored 301 total points, good for fifth out of 27 schools in the combined standings. The women were fourth in their points trophy standings with 154 and the men tallied 147 points, fifth-most in their standings.

While the men's team did not experience as much success overall as the women's team on Sunday, they made their biggest race of the day count. Led by sophomore coxswain Darien Chiang (Quincy, Mass.) and junior stroke seat Luke Desmaison (New York City) the Bates men's first varsity eight finished second to Tufts in their heat with a time of 5:51.081. The Jumbos won the race in 5:49.035 as both crews advanced to the grand final. Then in the grand final, the Bobcats flipped the script on the Jumbos, finishing second out of six schools in 5:41.064. Tufts (5:41.930) and Williams (5:41.957) were hot on their heels, but Bates beat them for the silver medal and one of two automatic bids to the IRA National Championship. Trinity won the race, and the NESCAC title, in 5:39.214.

Racing started at 8 a.m. on Sunday and didn't wrap up until nearly 5 p.m. The first victory of the morning came from the women's third varsity eight. Led by first-year coxswain Shoshana Levy (Arlington, Va.) and first-year stroke seat Caitlin Regan (Bethesda, Md.), the Bobcats took first in their heat with a time of 7:03.157, easily out-racing runner-up Trinity (7:08.013). Later in the day, Bates took third in their grand final, earning a bronze medal with a time of 6:54.422, trailing Tufts and Williams but well ahead of Wesleyan, Smith, and Trinity.

The women's second varsity eight also won their heat. Led by first-year coxswain Leah Brody (Larchmont, N.Y.) and senior captain stroke seat Rylee Eaton (Little Deer Isle, Maine), the Bobcats raced to the finish in 6:51.643, beating runner-up Williams by just under two seconds. The Bobcats finished sixth in their grand final in 6:55.437, just behind Williams (6:54.225) and Smith (6:54.173).

Led by first-year coxswain Hannah Herbst (Larkspur, Calif.) and senior captain stroke seat Hannah Burdick (Lyme, N.H.), the women's first varsity eight made the top three boats a perfect three-for-three in their heats with a victory of their own, crossing the finish line in 6:38.351, well ahead of runner-up Trinity (6:42.25). 

The Bobcats missed out on a silver medal by less than a second in the grand final, taking fourth in 6:37.900. Tufts won the race in 6:34.623. But Williams (6:37.157) and Wesleyan (6:37.757) finished barely ahead of the Bobcats. 

Bates MV8 lineup: Bow: Erik Lindholm; 2: Sean Christiansen; 3: Luke Johnson; 4: Ben Auerbach; 5: Oliver Firmenich; 6: Charles Renvyle; 7: George Fauver; Stroke: Luke Desmaison; c: Darien Chiang

Bates M2V8 lineup: Bow: Thomas Pacinda; 2: Leo Sullivan; 3: Kelly McKaige; 4: Nicholas Hoerle; 5: Jimmy Staller; 6: John Cleary; 7: Benji Richards; Stroke: Ian Van Loo; c: Izzy Beck

Bates M3V8 lineup: Bow: Cooper Drazek; 2: Finian Guinney; 3: Micah Johnson; 4: Hugh McCabe 5: Alex Appleton; 6: Sam Perozek; 7: Wiley Anderson; Stroke: Peter Gratwick; c: Micah Shimizu

Bates M4V8 lineup: Bow: Mason Choiniere Barr; 2: Lorenzo Songsare-Shevy; 3: EJ Herrmann; 4: Diego Davalos; 5: Xavier Drouin; 6: Sam Williams; 7: Randy Li; Stroke: Louis Consigli; c: Hannah Daher

Bates MO4 lineup: Bow: Nate Oh; 2: Aidan O'Brien; 3: Robert Meier; 4: Ryan Berger; c: Melinda Kostrinsky

Bates WV8 lineup: Bow: Cal Dagner; 2: Tatum Holley; 3: Isabelle Martin; 4: Maggie Gill; 5: Quinn Gleason; 6: Olivia Szachta; 7: Olivia Smith; Stroke: Hannah Burdick; c: Hannah Herbst

Bates W2V8 lineup: Bow: Hannah de Fontaine; 2: Maggie Kornfeind; 3: Maddie Kemp; 4: Mia Senturk; 5: Megan O'Donnell; 6: Greta Oberdiek; 7: Elizabeth Gramley; Stroke: Rylee Eaton; c: Leah Brody

Bates W3V8 lineup: Bow: Miryam Keller;; 2: Evie Fox; 3: Mackenzie Higgins; 4: Kiki Hillery; 5: Arden Minor; 6: Charlotte Comrack; 7: Froney Dreher; Stroke: Caitlin Regan; c: Shoshana Levy

Bates W4V8 lineup: Bow: Kat O'Connell; 2: Taylor Glick; 3: Olivia Hill; 4: Dominique Bunnell; 5: Merrill Doherty; 6: Julia Buzacott; 7: Eva Calcutt; Stroke: Virginia Adams; c: Sara Maquera

Bates WO4 lineup: Bow: Ella Westhoff; 2: Ella Lisle; 3: Willow West; 4: Noa Hart; c: Sarah Wallace