“This year, we came in with the expectations of winning the whole thing,” head coach Matt Weise said. “Last year, we were happy with sixth and this year we had such high expectations that we seem disappointed with the same result.”

The Spartans, who entered the weekend ranked No. 6 in the country, were one of only 12 teams to qualify for the national tournament. MSU’s sixth place overall finish, which was the best of any Big Ten school, was tied for the best ever team finish for the Spartans.

The Spartans performed well on Friday and Saturday — qualifying two boats to race in the Grand Final on Sunday.

MSU’s varsity eight boat, which features the Spartans’ top rowers, finished in sixth place, while the varsity four boat finished the tournament in fifth.

“Our varsity eight did exactly what I asked and performed well in the middle of the race but just ran out of gas at the end,” Weise said. “Our varsity four has been racing well all spring and did well again (on Sunday).”

The second varsity eight took fourth place in the petite final Sunday, finishing 10th overall.

Brown won the national championship by finishing with 67 total points. The Spartans received 38 points.

MSU sophomore Emily Regan, who races in the varsity eight boat, said she was pleased with the way her team managed its high expectations this season.

“I think our team did really well,” she said. “We had good team chemistry all season long, and we will look to build off everything our seniors taught us.”

Despite feeling his team could have performed better, Weise said he felt everyone gave a valiant effort and did their best. He said he expects his team to improve in the offseason and return to the NCAA Championship races again next year.

“We have a really young team and this weekend will be great experience for next spring,” he said. “This weekend’s races will be something we can build on.”