FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 1, 2012 Contact: Jen Vandemoer Mitchell | Toile à Voile for ICSA | [email protected] | 763-234-8286 m. Photo credit: Bruce McDonald, McDonald Photography
SPERRY TOP-SIDER/ICSA WOMEN’S NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP DAY THREE Austin, Texas (June 1, 2012) – The Sperry Top-Sider/ICSA Women’s National Championship continued today in Austin, Texas on Lake Travis co-sponsored by the University of Texas Sailing Team and the Austin Yacht Club. Eighteen collegiate teams from across the nation are vying for the national title, the Gerald C. Miller Trophy, awarded to the winning team. Racing got underway around 10 a.m. in 5-6 knots of breeze from the northeast. Temperatures were in the high seventies to start the day. B-division hit the water first for races 3B and 4B. The sailors race on a windward/leeward course four times around, a W4, which has a downwind finish. Racing was postponed after race 3B due to a lack of wind. The sailors were eventually sent in to shore to wait for the breeze and take shelter from the sun and heat. It became a waiting game and the competitors did not head back out on the water until around 3 p.m. after a four-hour postponement. Race 4B had a general recall, but the second start was all clear. The wind filled in to about 7-10 knots from the southeast. Conditions continued to be shifty, but the breeze stayed steady and Boston College won the race with a nice lead over the University of Michigan, Yale University and Georgetown University. Light winds prevailed the rest of the day, 6-10 knots from a southeasterly direction and the temperature was in the high 80s. Staying in velocity and in phase on the racecourse was the name of the game as shifts continued to roll down the course, much like they did during yesterday’s racing. “The shifts were not typical oscillating shifts, but were persistent and big, sometimes lasting an entire leg,” Mike Callahan, head coach of Georgetown University says. This makes it tricky for the sailors to determine which shifts to commit to, not always knowing if it will last for a short amount of time or for a large portion of the race course. Callahan says at one point his sailors decided not to give into a right shift and ended up going from 12th place to 1st place by staying left away from the fleet. Callahan says there was a bit of randomness and craziness on the course, which also made the starting line a challenge. He says the race committee is doing the best they can with the conditions they are given. Georgetown’s plan today was to sail consistently and stay in the top ten, which they managed successfully thanks to Sydney Bolger ’12 and Rebecca Evans ’12 in A-division and Nancy Hagood ’14 and Tory Lynch 12 in B-division. Georgetown is currently in second place overall having moved up from fifth place after yesterday’s racing. They are one point behind the leaders, Boston College. Callahan says Georgetown has never won a Women’s National Championship title, the closest they have come was a second place finish in 2006 and a third place finish in 2005 the last time Nationals was held in Austin. Two races were completed in A-division and four races were completed in B-division today, which means there are many more races to get through tomorrow. The sailors will report again at 8 a.m. with racing set to begin around 9 a.m. CDT. The forecast is for winds out of the south around 8-12 knots and temperatures hovering around 90 degrees. Tomorrow will be the last day of racing in the regatta and no race can begin after 5 p.m. The day will culminate in an awards banquet scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on the Austin Yacht Club patio. The top three women’s teams will be presented with the Gerald C. Miller Trophy (1st place), the New England Women’s Trophy (2nd place) and the Ann Campbell Trophy (3rd place). The Quantum Women’s College Sailor of the Year will also be awarded to a female sailor who has consistently performed at the highest competitive level in the 2011-2012 seasons. The ICSA Women’s All-American Team will also be announced. For full results and regatta information visit the event website: http://2012nationals.collegesailing.org/ Top Nine Teams – Day 3 1. Boston College, 59 2.Georgetown University, 60 3. Yale University, 69 4. University of Rhode Island, 76 5. Connecticut College, 85 6. Harvard University, 88 7. College of Charleston, 89 8. U.S. Naval Academy, 106 9. Stanford University, 111 Watch live media coverage of the final day of the Sperry Top-Sider/ICSA Women's Semifinal on May 31 by clicking on the Live Media link at 2012nationals.collegesailing.org. The University of Texas will provide daily text and photo updates for each of the regattas and Chris Love Productions will provide video highlights, presented by Maclaren. To view or purchase photos of the action from Women's Nationals, visit the link for photos from photographer Bruce McDonald. He will be updating the gallery daily: http://www.mcdonaldphoto.com/Sailing/2012-Intercollegiate Maclaren is the pre-eminent lifestyle brand for parenting. For nearly 50 years Maclaren has stood for excellence, empowerment and innovation, and is best known for the creation of the first umbrella buggy, which revolutionized baby transport. Like Maclaren, the sport of sailing encompasses a complete lifestyle with a rich heritage. In an effort to spread the positive impact of sailing, the Maclaren Sailing Sponsorship Programme promotes participation and retention in the sport of sailing on a global basis. Maclaren sponsors a variety of sailors and regattas around the world including training and community initiatives. Please visit www.maclarenbaby.com for more information. The Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association (ICSA) is the governing authority for sailing competition at colleges and universities throughout the United States and in some parts of Canada. Visit www.collegesailing.org to learn more. The ICSA National Championships are sponsored by Sperry Top-Sider (www.sperrytopsider.com), Annapolis Performance Sailing (www.apsltd.com), Gill North America (www.gillna.com), and US SAILING (home.ussailing.org). -- Jennifer Vandemoer Mitchell Toile à Voile, LLC for ICSA [email protected] 763.234.8286 m. ________________________________________________ icsa mailing list [email protected] http://www.collegesailing.org/mailman/?listname=icsa Unsubscribe: Send a blank email to [email protected]
