Charleston rallies to win Coed Nationals

Newport, RI (May 31, 2019) – The Gill College Sailing Coed National Championship closed out today, and it was not until the last beat of the last race that the College of Charleston came out on top winning the national title and the Henry A. Morss Memorial Trophy.

The coed title was the final of three high caliber spring college sailing national championships that were run out of host site Sail Newport Sailing Center at Fort Adams by host school Brown University with support from Dartmouth College and NEISA.

A wind delay this morning kept sailors onshore until enough filled in to have a 12:10 p.m. harbor start. Winds filled in from the southeast and stayed light to moderate in the afternoon, with the last races of the day brought some stronger pressure and hiking conditions.

Racing concluded just before 5:30 p.m. meeting the deadline to not start a race after 5 p.m. The competitors completed six races in each division today for a regatta total of 16 races in both divisions in FJs and Z420s on windward-leeward courses.

The racing could not have happened or been such a success without the race officers: regatta chairs John Mollicone (Brown) and Justin Assad (Dartmouth); college sailing representative Danielle Richards; principle race officer John Mollicone; chief judge Fred Hagedorn; and judges Cliff Black, Don Becker, and Megan Roach.

First Place, College of Charleston

Second Place, Yale University

Third Place, U.S. Naval Academy

Charleston, which entered the final day in fourth – 27 points off the lead, reclaimed the title they won two years ago. The Henry A. Morss Memorial Trophy was donated by a group of nationally known yachtsmen as a memorial to Henry A. Morss, a Boston yachtsman and 1907 Bermuda Race winner, as well as an MIT alumnus and benefactor.

“Augie [Dale] and Katie [Lounsbury] sailed well all of the event in A-division,” says Ward Cromwell, head coach for Charleston. “This is not an easy task, but they were one of the fastest boats out there – and that was one edge we had. We also made a switch in our B-division sailors for the last set when the wind picked up a bit and we needed another edge.

“There were challenging starts in the last races but we held it together. We were able to get off the line well and we had great boat speed and that’s what kept us out in front. After a tough team race regatta it was great to see the team rally and win this event.”

Sailing for Charleston is: Augie Dale ’19 with Katherine Lounsbury ’20 in A-division, Alie Toppa ’20 with Annabel Carrington ’19 and Jack Brown ’21 with Payton Alexander ’19 in B-division.

Yale University finished in second place just five points behind Charleston and won the Oxford University Trophy.

The Oxford University Trophy is awarded to the second place team in the Gill Coed Dinghy National Championship. The Oxford University Yacht Club team and its captain Jeremy Thomas presented this trophy in 1954 on the occasion of the first of a continuing series of college regattas between British and North American teams held alternately in the United States and Great Britain every two years.

“Today was about getting re-focused and getting our confidence up,” says Bill Healy, associate head coach for Yale. Yale finished yesterday in sixth place, so they made a big move up the scoreboard today.

“We had a great group of teammates who helped each other get up and rebound to get back in the racing today,” says Healy. “There were not many mistakes on the racecourse to allow any breathing room, it was tight racing for the whole event.”

Low-point A-division, Augie Dale ’19 with Katherine Lounsbury ’20, College of Charleston

Sailing for Yale is: Nicholas Baird ’19 with Sonia Lingos-Utley ’21 in A-division and Shawn Harvey ’21 with Graceann Nicolosi ’20 and Louisa Nordstrom ’20 with Claudia Loiacono ’21 in B-division.

U.S. Naval Academy finished in third place only five points behind Yale, winning the Metropolitan Sailing League Trophy, which was first presented in 1971.

“It was a tight fight this event,” says Ian Burman, head coach for Navy. “There were a lot of teams in it, it was so close. Our B-division sailed spectacularly, it was impressive to see our skipper, Joseph Hermus, come so far. He had not been in an FJ or sailed short course races before college sailing. He worked hard and learned a lot.

“I think the hardest part of this regatta was that the fleet was so good, there are a lot of good sailors on the water and at this event the level of sailing is so high.”

Sailing for Navy is: Parker Loftus ’20 with Olivia de Olazarra ’22 and Emma Remis ’20 in A-division and Joseph Hermus ’22 with Ana Mier ’19 and Sean Linden ’21 in B-division.

Low-point B-division, Joseph Hermus ’22 with Ana Mier ’19 and Sean Linden ’21, U.S. Naval Academy

The Robert Allan, Sr. and Robert Allan, Jr. Trophies are awarded to the low point “A” and “B” teams, respectively, in the Gill Coed College Sailing National Championship.

Augie Dale ’19 with Katherine Lounsbury ’20 won A-division from College of Charleston with 79 points, three points ahead of second place. Joseph Hermus ’22 with Ana Mier ’19 and Sean Linden ’21 from the U.S. Naval Academy won B-division with 65 points, 33 points ahead of second place.

Gill Coed Final Results (16 races):
1. College of Charleston, 205
2. Yale University, 210
3. U.S. Naval Academy, 215
4. Hobart and William Smith Colleges, 256
5. Brown University, 260
6. Georgetown University, 261
7. St. Mary’s College of Maryland, 266
8. Stanford University, 285
9. Dartmouth College, 301
10. Boston University, 302
11. Tufts University, 311
12. U.S. Coast Guard Academy, 316
13. Old Dominion University, 339
14. Bowdoin College, 359
15. Boston College, 373
16. Jacksonville University, 377
17. Connecticut College, 391
18. University of California at Santa Barbara, 442

Event details – Results – Facebook

2019 Spring Nationals
May 21-24 – Women’s Dinghy
May 25-27 – Team Race
May 28-31 – Coed Dinghy

The 2018-19 season for the Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association (ICSA) held the Match Racing Nationals and Singlehanded Nationals during the fall season, with the final three national titles on May 21 to 31 in Newport, RI.

Source: ICSA