OAK RIDGE, Tenn. - The North Carolina rowing team competed against some of the nation's top squads Saturday at the Aramark South/Central Sprints on Melton Hill Lake and will wrap up the season there on Sunday morning. Saturday's full day of racing in heats and semifinals was made even longer by a three-hour delay because of afternoon storms.

The novice eight was the first UNC boat in action Saturday, and the Tar Heels finished their morning heat in fourth with a time of 7:31.30, behind Virginia (6:54.80), Wisconsin and Tennessee. The finish put UNC in the afternoon repechage, where the Tar Heels took another fourth, finishing in 7:35.81 to edge Atlantic Coast Conference-rival Duke (7:38.79). Another ACC boat, Clemson, won the race in 7:17.30. UNC will race in the B final on Sunday at 10:10 a.m. Also in the field are Central Florida, Cincinnati, Duke, Kansas State and Tennessee.

The Carolina second varsity eight was fourth in its morning heat in a time of 6:56.3, trailing Michigan (6:39.2), Wisconsin and Minnesota. The Tar Heels advanced straight to Sunday's C final, which is scheduled for 9:20 a.m. and will also include Central Florida, Cincinnati, Kansas, Kansas State, Louisville and Miami.

The varsity eight finished fifth in its morning heat in a time of 6:56.71 to gain a spot in the afternoon's C/D semifinal. In that race, the Tar Heels were fourth in 6:57.99, edging SMU. UNC advanced to Sunday's D final, which will begin at 9 a.m. and is the first race of the day. Also in the D final are Kansas State and SMU.

Novice Eight

Heat
1. Virginia 6:54.80
2. Wisconsin 6:58.0
3. Tennessee 7:02.50
4. UNC 7:31.50

Repechage
1. Clemson 7:17.30
2. Iowa 7:17.60
3. Tennessee 7:24.62
4. UNC 7:35.81
5. Duke 7:38.79

Second Varsity Eight

Heat
1. Michigan 6:39.2
2. Wisconsin 6:43.8
3. Minnesota 6:51.1
4. UNC 6:56.3

Varsity Eight

C/D Semifinal
1. Clemson 6:47.40
2. Miami 6:51.18
3. Cincinnati 6:51.57
4. UNC 6:57.99
5. SMU 7:02.66