DERBY, Conn. -- The 2022-23 Yale lightweight squad made its debut at the Head of the Housatonic Saturday, marking the Bulldogs' first full team competition since the Eastern Sprints last May.

The Head of the Housatonic is a good early fall test, and good preparation for the Head of the Charles. The lightweights entered the Men's Open IRA event and competed against their heavyweight counterparts and opposing heavyweight crews from Northeastern, Brown and Trinity. A strong headwind dominated the 4.2 k course and made the winning time the slowest in the last five runnings of the event.

In the Men's Open IRA Eights, the Bulldogs earned a seventh-place finish with a time of 13:56.9. The rest of the Eli lightweight fleet finished 11th, 17th, and 18th respectively.

Earlier in the morning, the novice eight finished second behind Fairfield and ahead of West Point and UConn.

The Head of the Housatonic is one of the largest single-day regattas in the country, with more than 40 events.

The Bulldogs will now look ahead towards the Head of the Charles on October 23.