BETHEL, Ohio – Powered by a winning performance in the Varsity Eight Grand Final, the Western Washington University women's rowing team claimed its ninth NCAA Division II National Championship in program history Saturday on Harsha Lake at East Fork State Park in Bethel, Ohio.

 

WWU edged out second-place Mercyhurst by one point in the final standings, earning 22 total points, with the top four teams separated by four total points in the closest team final team standings in the 22-year history of the event. The NCAA Championships scoring format rewards more points to the eights, with WWU picking up 18 points with its dominating performance in the V8+ and four points by placing 5th overall and winning the petite final in the fours.

 

The Vikings won their ninth team title in program history, adding to the expanding trophy case winning seven consecutive first-place trophies from 2005-2011, 2017 and in 2024. The team championship was the 13th in WWU Athletics history and first since the women's soccer team won the 2022 national title in Seattle at the Fall Championships Festival. Last week the softball team earned national runner-up honors at the World Series in Florida.

 

A day after recording the fastest qualifying time in the heats of the Varsity 8+, the Vikings recorded a wire-to-wire victory in the Grand Final with a time of 6:57.610 on the 2,000-meter course just outside of Cincinnati. Western recorded a margin of victory of over three seconds to hold off Mercyhurst over the last 500 meters to claim the program's seventh V8+ national title and first since 2011. 

 

The Vikings Varsity 4+ opened championship Saturday winning the petite final with a speedy time of 8:03.570, defeating Embry-Riddle (8:08.690) in a head-to-head race. WWU charged off the start line and held a lead wire-to-wire to record the 5th-fastest time in the event during the final day of the championship regatta. The Vikings picked up four team points by winning the petite final after just missing one of the four qualifying spots for the grand final placing 3rd in the Friday afternoon repechage. 

 

The 2024 season marked the 20th time in program history WWU advanced to the NCAA Rowing Championships, taking home the ninth team title. Under the guidance of 26th-year head coach John Fuchs and longtime assistant coach and program alum Courtney Moeller, the Vikings are nine-time national champions winning seven consecutive titles from 2005-11, 2017 and this year in 2024.

𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟰 𝗡𝗖𝗔𝗔 𝗗𝗜𝗜 𝗥𝗼𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗡𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀

Congrats to @WWU_Rowing on winning the 9th team NCAA Championship in program history, adding to first-place finishes in 2005-11 and 2017!!!!#RowViks pic.twitter.com/zsea0jEAyQ
— WWU Athletics (@WWUAthletics) June 1, 2024
  

Western Washington won the 2024 NCAA Division II National Championship scoring 22 points, earning 18 by winning the featured Varsity Eight Grand Final and picking up four key points by winning the Varsity Four Petite Final. WWU's 22 points edged out 2022 national champion Mercyhurst by one point and Central Oklahoma by two points. 

 

 

Here is a look at the team scoring format and points breakdown for the 2024 NCAA Rowing Championships:

 

  
 
 
 
 
 
 
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Here is a look at the lineups that raced for the Vikings at the NCAA Championships:

 

 

Here is a look at the results from the 2024 NCAA Division II Rowing Championships, including racing from Friday's heats and repechage and Saturday's petite and grand finals. The Varsity Eight victory by the Vikings marked the program's seventh in program history in the event and first since 2011:

 

 

Here are some handy links on how to follow the Vikings at the NCAA Rowing Championships in Ohio:

 

• NCAA Division II Rowing
• Live Results
• Webcast via NCAA.com
• Program
• D2 Rowing History
• Row2k.com Coverage
• 2024 WWU Regatta Results

  
 
 
 
 
 
 
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The NCAA Division II Rowing Championships featured a six-team field with each program fielding a Varsity 8+ and Varsity 4+ lineup. This year's field consisted of four teams from the West Region, with the entire Great Northwest Athletic Conference represented:

 

 

WWU has advanced to the NCAA Division II Rowing Championships in 20 of the 22 years of the event (20 of 21 in full seasons) and 21 total times to the national rowing regatta (was a combined championship prior to 2002). The Vikings are nine-time national champions, winning seven consecutive titles from 2005-11, again in 2017 and added the ninth title this year. In 20 trips to the DII Rowing Championships, Western has taken home the gold (9 times) or silver (5 times) medal 14 times.
 

Here is a look at the national champion and runner-up from each of the 22 years that the NCAA Division II has crowned a national title dating back to 2002. WWU won seven consecutive national titles from 2005-11 and returned to the top of the podium in 2017.

 

 

The national championship marked the 13th team title in Western Washington University Athletics history, with 12 at the NCAA level (Women's Rowing-9, Men's Basketball-2012, Women's Soccer-2016, 2022) and one at the NAIA level (Softball-1998 NAIA). WWU has also earned recent national runner-up finishes in Softball (2024), Women's Basketball (2022), Women's Soccer (2019) and Volleyball (2018).

1️⃣3️⃣ TEAM NATIONAL TITLES! pic.twitter.com/eD7gbIG8L5
— WWU Athletics (@WWUAthletics) June 1, 2024
  

Led by head coach John Fuchs (26th season), WWU Rowing is one of the elite collegiate rowing programs in the country, having won nine NCAA Division II National Championships. The Vikings won the 2024 NCAA II National Title, the 2017 title, placed 2nd in 2018, 3rd in 2019 and runner-up in 2022. WWU has competed in the NCAA Championships in 20 of the 22 NCAA Division II national regattas, taking home the gold (9 times), silver (5 times) and bronze (5) medal 19 times in the 22 years the NCAA Division II team title has been awarded, and reached the podium 19 times. Western won seven consecutive DII national championships from 2005-2011.

 

WWU Rowing Inside the Numbers:

20 – NCAA II Rowing Championship Appearances (out of 22)

16 – Individual Championships (Eight-7, Fours-9)

9 – National Championships (2005-11, 2017, 2024)

5 – National Runner-Up Finishes

5 – 3rd Place Finishes at Nationals

2 – GNAC Championships (in 4-year history of event)