Boston College wins Women's Fleet Race Nationals

by Preston Anderson 27 May 2022 17:41 BST May 25-26, 2022

ICSA Women's Fleet Race Nationals 2022 © Lexi Pline / US Sailing

After four days of racing on Lake Pontchartrain with tricky conditions and thunderstorms threatening a shortened Championship, Boston College came away victorious for the College Sailing Women's National Fleet Racing Championship.

The College Sailing Women's National Championship hosted at Tulane University was well under way on May 25-26 following the Semi-Final round that happened on the two days prior. 18 teams from across the country were competing for the prestigious Gerald C. Miller Memorial Trophy.

Racing kicked off on Saturday at 10:00 AM with A Division in 420s and B Division in FJs. Competitors saw a range of conditions with breeze coming from the Southeast at 3-15 knots. Two races in A division and one Race in B Division were completed until racing was halted for about four hours due to thunderstorms. Eventually, the storms cleared and four races in both divisions were completed by the end of day one.

Leading the regatta after the first day, is Yale University with a total of 30 points. Harvard University sits in second place with 36 points. Stanford University is in third with a total of 47 points.

Winners - ICSA Women's Fleet Race Nationals 2022 - photo © Lexi Pline / US Sailing

Rebecca McElvain, Dartmouth College Assistant Coach, stated after racing yesterday, "In general our goal as a team is to sail clean and conservative and keep it ultra simple. Tack on headers, don't start in crowds, and keep the good vibes rolling." Dartmouth College is in 12th with 84 points.

At the conclusion of Saturday Emma Kaneti '22, Marleigh Belsley '24 and Alexandra Dorofeev '25 of Harvard University lead A division with a total of 13 points. Sophia Reineke '22, Laura Ferraris '22 and Sara Schumann '25 of Boston College trail them in second with a total of 18 points. Michelle Lahrkamp '23, Grace Austin '24 and Sammy Pickell '22 of Stanford University are tied for second place with 18 points as well.

"This morning was super breezy so we tried to stay flat and sail fast to the pressure. Marleigh, my crew, did an awesome job hiking hard; we're glad all the heavy wind practice this season came into use! The lighter wind in the afternoon was a bit more tricky, but we're up for the challenge tomorrow!" Emma Kaneti '22 of Harvard University stated, recapping the day on the water.

Emma Cowles '25, Mia Nicolosi '25, Ximena Escobar '25 and Anisha Arcot '23 of Yale University lead the B Division with 9 points. Caroline Bayless '23, Madeleine McGrath '22 and Julia Reynolds trail them in second place with 23 points. Marbella Marlo '24, Sarah Burn '24, Corinne Lee '23 and Juliana Ruggieri '23 are tied for second place with a total of 23 points as well.

ICSA Women's Fleet Race Nationals 2022 - photo © Lexi Pline / US Sailing

"There were a lot of ups and downs today so it was crucial to be flexible. Also with so much time on land it was important to mentally check back in every 30 minutes. Overall it was a great day and we're excited for more racing tomorrow." Caroline Bayless '23 of Brown University stated after racing. Her crew, Madeleine McGrath '22 continued, "As usual, sailing with your head out of the boat was key. Today was fairly shifty so if we played the shifts well and had good boat speed and fleet management we'd be pretty successful. We're hoping to have a lot more good racing tomorrow!"

Racing on Thursday kicked off at 10:00 am with a breeze coming from the East/Northeast. Winds ranged around 3-10 knots. A division sailed FJs and B division sailed 420s.

Boston College was able to secure the regatta win with a total of 114 points. Yale University finished the regatta in second with a total of 116 points. Stanford University finished in third with 120 points.

Greg Wilkinson, Head Coach of Boston College stated, "I'm just proud of our team. And I'm especially happy for our seniors. They graduated on Monday and now they're National Champions. So happy for them."

Sophia Reineke '22, Laura Ferraris '22 and Sara Schumann '25 of Boston College won A Division with a total of 45 points. Michelle Lahrkamp '23, Grace Austin '24 and Sammy Pickell '22 of Stanford University finished in second with a total of 57 points. Emma Kaneti '22, Marleigh Belsley '24 and Alexandra Dorofeev '25 of Harvard University finished in third with 63 points.

ICSA Women's Fleet Race Nationals 2022 - photo © Lexi Pline / US Sailing

Sara Schumann '25 of Boston College had this to say after winning the national championship, "Sophia and I went into the last race only to complete the goals we previously made for the regatta. We knew that by completing our goals we'd be happy with our racing regardless of the outcome of the scores. Super stoked to experience a National Championship and to get the job done with an amazing group of women."

Emma Cowles '25, Mia Nicolosi '25, Ximena Escobar '25 and Anisha Arcot '23 of Yale University in the B Division with a total of 41 points. Following them were Hallie Schiffman '23, Stephanie Houck '21, Hannah Freeman '24, Gwendolyn Donahue '24, Abigail Tindall '23 and Patrica Gerli '23 of Stanford University and they finished with 62 points. Rounding out the top 3 were Lilly Myers '23, Bridget Green '25, Jana Laurendeau '23, and Gabbi DelBello '23 of Cornell University, finishing with 68 points.

Congratulations to Boston College for winning the 2022 College Sailing Women's Dinghy National Championship!

For more regatta information visit the event website: 2022nationals.collegesailing.org

Overall Standings: