SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- The Mercyhurst College women's varsity eight advanced to the grand final of the 2010 NCAA Rowing Championships after winning its heat Friday morning.

Seeded second overall in the championship, the Lakers downed Seattle Pacific and Florida Tech in the first heat of the Division II varsity eight race.  Mercyhurst crossed the finish line in a time of 6:49.66, four seconds faster than second-place Seatte Pacific (6:53.71) and almost 20 seconds faster than Florida Tech (7:09.16).  

Joining the Lakers in the grand final will be top-seeded and five-time defending champion Western Washington, the winners of the second heat of varsity eight boats.  The Vikings captured first in a time of 6:44.78, with Barry (6:55.07) and Philadelphia (7:02.08) rounding out the second heat.

Meanwhile, Seattle Pacific, Florida Tech, Barry and Philadelphia will now battle on Saturday, May 29 in the four-boat repechage at 10:30 a.m. PST (1:30 p.m. EST).  The top two boats from the repechage earn a place in the grand final which is scheduled for Sunday, May 30 at 9:30 a.m. PST (12:30 p.m. EST). 

Complete results from the 2010 NCAA Rowing Championships, which features all three divisions, can be found by clicking here.