History made at College Nationals

Kings Point, NY (June 2, 2023) – Stanford University took a historic win at the 2023 Open National Championship out of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy after four days of racing on the Long Island Sound.

For the first time in the championship’s 77 -plus year history, an all-female team won low point in both A and B Divisions, achieved by Stanford University in A Division and Yale University in B Division. 2023 is also the first time the overall championship has been won by a team of all-female sailors.

The Cardinal won with a 13-point lead above Yale University, and Harvard University rounded out the podium in third place behind Harvard by six points. Michelle Lahrkamp ’23/ Ellie Harned ’26 won A Division for Stanford while Carmen Cowles ’25/ Anisha Arcot ’23 were the B Division winners for Yale.

“We’re super overwhelmed,” said Stanford A Division Skipper Michelle Lahrkamp. “We are a predominantly female team, and we did a great job these last few days getting everything out of every day; we never gave up, we had our heads in the game the whole time. We really wanted it, and I am wearing my pink shirt for all the girls out there – you can win a National Championship!”

She told all the girls out there, “Never give up, don’t tell anyone you can’t do it, and always see yourself as equal.”

The Open National Championship was the last of three high-caliber spring College Sailing National Championships that took place over a marathon 11 days back to back.

• Sailing for Stanford: Michelle Lahrkamp ’23 (A Skipper), Ellie Harned ’26 (A Crew), Vanessa Lahrkamp ’26 (B Skipper), Abigail Tindall ’23 (B Crew)

• Sailing for Yale: Jack Egan ’25 (A Skipper), Catherine Webb ’23 (A Crew), Carmen Cowles ’25 (B Skipper), Anisha Arcot ’23 (B Crew)

• Sailing for Harvard: Lachlain McGranahan ‘24 (A Skipper), Christopher Wang ‘23 (A Crew), Justin Callahan ‘26 (B Skipper), Kennedy Leehealey ‘26 (B Crew)

Yale’s Associate Head Coach, Bill Healey, commented on the second place finish, “The team never gave up. We were hoping for one more race for one final push but the time had expired. Congratulations to Stanford for an amazing week.”

After the semifinal stage that reduced the field from 36 teams to 18 schools, light winds allowed for a 9-race series for the Finals on June 1-2.

Daily recaps:
• Day one started under postponement with very little wind, finally getting underway at 3:30 pm with a not-so-strong northerly breeze. Race 1 of A division got called off as the southerly quickly filled. To get as many races as possible, teams rotated on the water. Sailors battled it out until well past sunset with six races in each division, and finally derigged at 8:30 pm. At the end of the first day of Finals, Stanford University held first place by 6 points, Yale University sat in second, and Dartmouth College held third.

• Day two kicked off with a postponement for similar starting conditions to day one. A mild southerly kicked in at 3:15 pm and teams hit the water for the last day of Finals. Current proved to be a relentless factor yet again, and with the light breeze, only three races in each division were completed; Race 10A was attempted but ultimately abandoned due to time constraints.

The event has been coed since its inception in 1937, with the early competitions sailed at MIT on the Charles River. Since 1946, the nationals site has been rotated throughout the member conferences of the Intercollegiate Sailing Association.

• Results: https://scores.collegesailing.org/s23/sailing-dinghy-national/
• Photos: https://usst.photoshelter.com/galleries/C0000WC6IOSqKe3s/College-Sailing-National-Championships

National Championship Schedule:
April 29-30, Women’s Team Race – Stanford, CA
May 23-26, Women’s Fleet Race – Kings Point, NY
May 27-29, Open Team Race – Kings Point, NY
May 30-June 2, Open Fleet Race – Kings Point, NY

Source: ICSA