The girls were dressed in long, dark blue dresses and pearl necklaces, the boys wore tuxedos with bow ties. On Tuesday afternoon at Pacific Union College in Angwin, the members of the Napa High Choir anxiously awaited their chance to shine.

They practiced all year for this moment.

For some seniors, it was the culmination of their high school choral careers, "the Super Bowl of the choir world."

It was the 12th annual Northern California Golden State Choral Competition.

Schools from all around the Bay Area came to compete. Tensions ran high in the church sanctuary. Some girls worked hard to perfect their make-up. Others reviewed song lyrics. The Napa High Choir was cool and collected, confident, but not cocky. The Small Choir Award winners in 2005, Napa High is known for placing each time it competes, and the other high schools know it.

"They don't want us to win," MaryAnn Crawford, 17, said, "but we try to have class and be gracious to them."

The Napa High Choir was the last choir to take the stage under the "large choir" category. Its 105 singers neatly filed onto the rows, grinning -- some with glee, others with nervousness.

They sang three powerful songs for the competition. The second song, "Lux Aeterna," was packed with emotion that held the audience captive. Their last song, "Rytmus," was equally intense, sung with focus and strong voices.

After each song, Director Travis Rogers turned to the audience, adjusted his coat, and stiffened his shoulders. Smiling proudly, he was clearly pleased with the choir's performance. So were his singers.

"We all put our hearts on the line S even if we don't win we can still go home with our heads high," Amber Guillen, 18, said.

They didn't win. Napa High placed third. Mount Eden High School from Hayward took first place, while Campolindo High School took second.