Qualifying Begins at College Women’s Nationals

San Diego, CA (May 24, 2016) – The Intercollegiate Sailing Association’s spring nationals began today with the start of the Sperry Women’s National Semi-Final and Final Championship. Thirty-six college teams from across the U.S. set out on San Diego Bay, enduring a long day interrupted by squalls and shifting winds.

The Semi-Finals on May 24-25 divides the fleet into two 18-team regattas, with the top nine teams from each group advancing to the Finals Round – an 18-boat regatta on May 26-27. Entering the Nationals, the latest Sailing World’s College Rankings had Rhode Island and Coast Guard as the top two schools, and that’s how the results are looking after day one.

In the Eastern Semi-Finals, the University of Rhode Island Rams holds a 12 point lead on the fleet (after races 8A and 6B), while the Coast Guard Bears dominated the day in the Western Semi-Finals, building a 27 point lead (after races 6A and 6B).

After a 10:30am start, racing finished up around 7 p.m. for the Western fleet and around 7:30 p.m. for the Eastern fleet.

“We did a good job positioning our boats on the fleet,” noted Brian Swingly, head coach for Coast Guard. “We were seeing the course well and we were able to see the shifts and velocity quicker than the rest of the fleet.”

Sailing for Coast Guard is Nikole Barnes ’17 with Anna Morin ‘19 in A-division and Dana Rohde ’18 and Hannah Herring ‘18 in B-division. Yale University, the defending champions, are behind Coast Guard in second place and the University of California Santa Barbara is in third place.

“It was easier racing today than it will be for the finals,” says Skip Whyte, head coach for Rhode Island. “There was a long starting line, which gave our girls and everyone a chance to do well off of the line. It’s not critical to win the semi-finals… just want to be really ready for the finals.”

Sailing for Rhode Island is Rachel Bryer ’17 with Hannah Scanlon ’18 in A-division and Sarah Hermus ’18 with Marisa DeCollibus ’17 in B-division. Rhode Island is followed by Boston University in second place and the University of Vermont in third place.

Ultimately, since the Semi-Final scores don’t roll into the Finals, it is all about finishing in the top nine to qualify. After day one, the bubble teams are Virginia and MIT in the East and Hobart and William Smith Colleges and Navy in the West.

Event details – Eastern Semi-Finals Scores – Western Semi-Final Scores – Photos – Facebook

Background: The Intercollegiate Sailing Association’s three spring national championships, Sperry Women’s National Semi-Final and Final Championship, LaserPerformance Team Race National Championship, and the Gill Coed Dinghy National Semi-Final and Final Championship will be held May 24-June 3, with schools racing Club and Collegiate FJs on San Diego Bay in San Diego, CA. The three events will be co-hosted by San Diego Yacht Club and the Pacific Coast Collegiate Sailing Conference.

Source: Scuttlebutt, ICSA