Qualifying done at Women’s Nationals

New Orleans, LA (May 24, 2022) – The 4-day College Sailing Women’s Dinghy National Championship began with two sets of 18 teams competing in a round robin series on May 23-24 to advance the top 9 from each field the finals.

Sailed in 420s and FJs, there were a few teams making history at this event as it was their team’s first time making it to the semi-final round.

“Northeastern’s participation in this year’s nationals is a testament of hard work put in not only by this team but by the work of our 2021 class that unfortunately were not able to compete,” noted Head Coach Jonathan Farrar of Northeastern. “This is a huge hurdle for our program and we look forward to becoming stronger at the national level in years to come.”

In addition, Head Coach Dana Magliola of North Carolina State also stated on his team’s first time attending this event. “The women’s team started in 2013 and has consistently grown. We have a roster of 11 women on our team. A division skipper Olivia Sowa was awarded all conference honors in SAISA as a First Team Women’s Skipper, and she and Isa du Plessis were both selected as All Conference crews.”

Semifinals racing began yesterday around 10:00am. Competitors saw conditions starting at around a variable 5-12 knots out of the East which eventually shifted Northeast. Leading out of the Eastern Semi-Final was Yale University with a total 54 points which is a 2 point lead over the 2nd place Boston College Eagles. In third is Cornell University with 69 points.

“Our whole goal for racing today was to minimize risk and put ourselves in the hunt,” said Bowdoin coach Frank Pizzo after day one. “We had decent boatspeed all day which bailed us out of some tough starts and allowed our team to have some good finishes. The chop was challenging to sail in and we are looking forward to another good day of racing tomorrow.”

Bowdoin is in 7th place with a total of 103 points after day one.

The A division leaders within the Eastern Semi-Final, after day one, were Carmen Cowles ‘25, Meredith Ryan ‘23, and Helena Ware ‘23 of Yale University. They held a seven point lead over Colleen O’Brien ‘24, Michaela O’Brien ‘24, and Nicole Moeder ‘22 of Boston College. Ciara Rodriguez-Horan ‘22, Mia Hanes ‘24, Lucy Spearman ‘25, Isabella Bentz ‘24, and Lydia Brown ‘23 of Tulane University sit in third with a total of 31 points.

The B division leaders, after day one, were Bridget Green ‘25 and Gabbi DelBello ‘23 of Cornell University. They held a three point lead over Sofia Segalla ‘25 and Shaanti Choi-Bose ‘24 of the University of Pennsylvania Quakers. Boston College sailors Sophia Reineke ‘22, Libby Redmond ‘24, Sara Schumann ‘25, and Lourdes Gallo ‘24, trailed Penn by five points.

After eight A Division races, Skipper Olivia de Olazarra ‘22 of the United States Naval Academy noted, “Sailing today was similar to what we saw in Open Semis and Finals. It’s pretty up and down both in breeze and in angle. A lot of people are inconsistent so it’s really good to keep putting up low numbers and keep chugging.”

After six races in B Division of the Semi-Final Regatta, Crew Gabbi DelBello of Cornell University stated, “Today showed consistent breeze, oscillating, and it was all about fleet management on the water.”

Leading out of the Western Semi-Final on day one was Stanford University with a total of 73 points which was a 15 point lead over 2nd place Harvard University. Brown University was in third with a total of 89 points.

The A Division leaders, after day one, were Charlotte Rose ‘22 and Caroline Bourgeois ‘22 of Jacksonville University with a total of 34 points. They held a 16 point lead over Emma Kaneti ‘22 and Marbella Marlo ‘24 of Harvard University. In third place, Gray Hemans ‘25 and Caroline Oyster ‘24 of Dartmouth College trailed Navy by two points with a total of 52 points.

Said Rose, “Today was pretty shifty like all the days prior. It came out of the Southeast and it was pretty choppy. There were storms around us as well. So it was pretty head on a swivel, keep your head out of the boat, look for the next pressure and just try to keep clear air around the boats in the fleet.”

The B Division leaders, after day one, were Stephanie Houck ‘21 and Abigail Tindall ‘23 of Stanford University. They held a five point lead over Kaila Pfrang ‘21 and Samantha Karlson ‘25 of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Trailing, nine points behind, in third place were Caroline Bayless ‘23 and Julia Reynolds ‘22of Brown University with a total of 30 points.

After a total of six B division races, Kaila Pfrang ‘21 of MIT stated, “Today was a pretty heads up day. We had all sorts of conditions, overall, pretty much on the light side but decent oscillations. It really just felt like the starts were super important getting off the line, getting pretty clear.

“There weren’t a ton of passing lanes which definitely made it kind of hard. Just trying to get to the side where you thought the wind was going to come to. In the morning it seemed a little more on the right and in the afternoon it seemed a little more on the left. But yeah just keeping clear lanes.”

Her crew, Samantha Karlson ‘25 continued, “It was also a massive boat speed day. You had to be careful not to get stalled out with the waves. Keep that level of heel as well as overall speed.”

The second day of the Semi-Finals kicked off today in conditions starting around 12-15 knots out of the South. Harvard University would win the Western Semi-Final regatta with a total of 144 points. Finishing in second, Stanford University with 146 points. In third place, Brown University with 154 points.

The Western Semi-Finals did not disappoint. Spots for the eighth and ninth qualifying spot to get to the finals came down to the final set of racing. St. Mary’s College of Maryland and College of Charleston were able to scrape together two exciting final races to get into the finals.

Said St. Mary’s sailor, Madison Bashaw ‘24, after her team sailed into the eighth qualifying spot: “To see friends both old and new on and off the race course all year is an amazing opportunity all year long. I am so fortunate to have a team of Seahawks who support one another—willing to do anything for their teammate, is a feeling I will cherish forever.”

The A division winners of the Western Semi-Final are Emma Kaneti ‘22, Marbella Marlo ‘24, and Marleigh Belsley ‘24 of Harvard University. They finished with 66 points and held a tie breaking lead over Charlotte Rose ‘22, Caroline Bourgeois ‘22, and Elizabeth Johnson ‘22 of Jacksonville University who also finished with 66 points. Finishing in third place with 81 Points were Gray Hemans ‘25 and Caroline Oyster ‘24 Dartmouth College.

“It’s really exciting to see a lot of sailors I’ve grown up sailing with all competing against each other in such a great venue,” shared Harvard sailor Marbella Marlo ‘24. “Our team dynamic is also really fun and competitive, and it’s awesome to see our hard work and team unison all come together for all three events.”

Head Coach Mike O’Connor added, “I’m very proud of our team. Every player has contributed and done very well. We have sailed four skippers and four crews. The MVP of the team up to this point has been Marbella Marlo. She has crewed in the Team Racing Championship, Open Semis, Open Finals, and Women’s Semis. And she skippered in the B Division when the breeze came up today!”

The B division winners are Stephanie Houck ‘21, Abigail Tindall ‘23, and Grace Austin ‘24 from Stanford University. They finished with a 16 point lead over Caroline Bayless ‘23, Brielle Willoughby ‘24, Julia Reynolds ‘22, Madeleine McGrath ‘22, Nora Ong ‘23, and Emilia Ruth ‘23 of Brown University. Harvard University sailors Sarah Burn ‘24, Cordelia Burn ‘25, Marbella Marlo ‘24, Corinne Lee ‘23 and Juliana Ruggieri ‘23 finished 11 points behind Brown.

“These past two days were tricky and required a lot of patience through the shifty and puffy conditions,” said Stephanie Houck ‘21 of Stanford. “We worked hard to keep the boat moving at all times while keeping tabs on what the breeze might be doing next. Looking forward to the next two days as we move into finals!”

The Eastern Semi-Finals had a lot of close racing as well. Yale University came out winning the Semi-Final with a total of 109 points. Boston College finished second with 115 points. The United States Naval Academy finished third with 158 points.

The A division winners of the Eastern Semi-Final are Carmen Cowles ‘25, Megan Grimes ‘24, Meredith Ryan ‘23, Helena Ware ‘23, Ximena Escobar ‘25, and Sonia Lingos-Utley ‘22 of Yale University.

They finished with 32 points and held a 21 point lead over Colleen O’Brien ‘24, Elizabeth Shanahan ‘23, Michaela O’Brien ‘24, Nicole Moeder ‘22, Laura Ferraris ‘22, and Emma Batcher ‘22 of Boston College who finished with 53 points. Finishing in third place with 84 Points were Olivia de Olazarra ‘22, Carlyn Blauvelt ‘23, Madeline Smith ‘24, and Elizabeth Linsdell ‘23 from the United States Naval Academy.

“Today Meredith and my primary focus was to keep our heads out of the boat and be patient with pressure and shifts,”recalled Carmen Cowles ‘25 from Yale. “Boat speed was crucial to be able to be comfortable playing some risk when needed. Overall, keeping cool heads in the boat helped us stay in the game.”

The B division winners are Bridget Green ‘25, Lilly Myers ‘23, Gabbi DelBello ‘23, and Amelia Neumann ‘25 from Cornell University. They finished with a six point lead over Sophia Reineke ‘22, Libby Redmond ‘24, Sara Schumann ‘25, Lourdes Gallo ‘24, Katelyn McGauley ‘24, and Lilly Mathieu ‘23 of Boston College. United States Naval Academy sailors Eva Blauvelt ‘25, Julia Christie ‘24, and Maggie Schuler ‘25 finished 12 points behind Boston College.

Tomorrow, the top 9 teams from each Semi-Final advance to the College Sailing Women’s National Championship held on May 25-26.

Event information – Eastern Results – Western Results – Facebook

2022 College Spring Nationals
May 16-18 – Open Team Racing
May 19-22 – Open Doublehanded Fleet Racing
May 23-26 – Women’s Doublehanded Fleet Racing

Source: ICSA