Challenging Conditions and Close Competition Marked a Thrilling Weekend of Racing
After two days of close competition in a tight fleet Ava Anderson, ‘27 of Tulane University and Nicholas Reeser ‘25 from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy are the 2023 Women’s and Open Singlehanded National Champions.
Athletes in both regattas were greeted Saturday on Lake Pontchartrain with overcast skies, 6-9 knots of breeze from the Northeast and a steady chop that had built overnight. The skill levels of the Women’s and Open fleets were readily apparent to coaches and spectators in the close results.
10 college sailing teams from across the country arrived Friday to Charleston, SC for the 2023 College Sailing Match Race National Championship. The Brown University Bears sailed strongly throughout the entire weekend to take home the Cornelius Shields Sr. Trophy!
Excellent conditions for match racing on Friday allowed for the entire first stage’s Round Robin to be completed. Conditions were 6-12 knots out of the North Northeast. The defending Champions, Yale University, were perfect after day one with a record of 9-0 trying to become the first team in the history of the event to win three years in a row. The top six teams earned a berth in the Gold Round Robin to determine seeding while the bottom four teams moved to the Repechage to fight for the last two berths in the Quarterfinals.
