FAIRFAX STATION, Va. – The Florida Tech Varsity 8+ earned a sixth place finish at the Occoquan River Invitational at Sandy Run Regional Park on Sunday. 
 
The crew opened the day in a race against Drexel during the morning session. Drexel got the better of Tech during the head-to-head matchup winning with a time of 6:52.43, while the Panthers finished at 7:07.00. 
 
The morning's result placed Florida Tech in the afternoon's 1V8+ Consolation Final against Holy Cross, Jacksonville, Marietta and St. Joe's. 
 
The Panthers' boat experienced some breakage during the first 500 meters and the craft had to be pulled out of the water for about 45 minutes to be repaired. Once the fix was completed, the consolation race was restarted. 
 
Tech started out slow but once the crew arrived at their base pace, they began passing the other crews. The Panthers got to the front of the pack and began to sprint to the finish. HC overtook Florida Tech during the final stretch and came out with the win at 6:56.9, while the Panthers finished second at 6:58.8. Marietta (7:02.01), Jacksonville (7:04.0) and St. Joe's (7:18.7) rounded out the final three positions. 
 
Varsity 8+
Coxswain / Ben Komita
Stroke / Thomas Francis
7 / Jaden Krekow
6 / Domantas Marocka
5 / Justas Kuskevicius 
4 / Luca Janus 
3 / Joshua Navarro 
2 / Arnedas Kelmelis 
Bow / Jackson Moore
 
UP NEXT:  Florida Tech competes at the SIRA Regatta on April 15-16 at Melton Hill Lake in Oak Ridge, Tenn. 
 
For the latest news, updates and information on the Florida Tech men's rowing team, visit FloridaTechSports.com. Fans can also stay up-to-date on the latest Panthers news by following Florida Tech Athletics on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.