GOLD RIVER – One point, three seconds, or however you measure it, Humboldt State came up just shy of a runner-up finish at the NCAA Division II Women's Rowing Championships, which concluded Sunday following three days of racing.

With Western Washington the heavy favorite to win its sixth consecutive national title, the battle for second place became a focal point for the three other qualified teams. After taking second place behind WWU and ahead of Mercyhurst in the morning's varsity four grand finals, HSU came up three seconds short, placing third behind Mercyhurst in the varsity eight.

The eight results are weighed more heavily in the scoring, leaving the Jacks with eight points to Mercyhurst's nine. As expected, WWU won both the women's individual races and claimed the team title with 20 points.

"We felt we could beat Mercyhurst, and if they had rowed yesterday the results probably would be different," head coach Robin Meiggs said. "Overall, this was a truly amazing season. It's not how we wanted it to end, but you can't go back and change it."

Despite possessing the second fastest time in both boats in Friday's preliminary races, Humboldt State had to row in Saturday's repechage in order to advance under NCAA rules. Heat winners Mercyhurst and Western Washington automatically advanced to Sunday's final, benefiting from an extra day of rest.

In the four, the Jacks trailed Western Washington early, but edged ahead of Mercyhurst by the 500-meter mark. HSU maintained before making a move on the leading boat with 1,500 meters remaining, leaving Mercyhurst behind.

Western Washington pulled away again, timing 7 minutes, 50.72 seconds on the 2,000-meter course. Humboldt State finished in 7:56.17 and Mercyhurst clocked 8:03.91 in windy conditions.

"We're delighted with the four's performance," Meiggs said. "It was the closest we've been to Western Washington all year. I couldn't be more proud of them."

The eight race contrasted the four, however, HSU falling behind the pack of four boats quickly in the first 500 meters. Humboldt State passed Nova Southeastern by the midway point, and closed the gap on Mercyhurst significantly, but after posting the fastest time of all boats in the final 500 meters still came up short in the second part of the race.

Western Washington took first with a time of 6;50.46, follwed by Mercyhurst (6:58.25) and the Lumberjacks (7:01.87). Nova Southeastern trailed the front group, ending in a time of 7:13.65.

"We didn't have any composure at the beginning," said Meiggs, who last guided her team to a nationals appearance in 2004. "Mercyhurst and Western Washington had just been here a year ago. We were a little intimidated. The team that remains composed pulls it out."

Rowing the Humboldt State four boat were Elena Pasqual as coxswain, Shenae Bishop, Amanda Nelson, Jackie McPherson, and Lauren Miller. The Jacks' eight lineup was Ka'ena Sado as coxswain, Ruthie Jones, Molly Fisher, Katie Lepley, Alex Torquemada, Jamie Larrabee, Vivi Smith, Michelle North and Chyna Balonick. Ashley Donnell served as substitutes.