June 7, 2005

Austin, Texas - After a long season that saw the Cardinal Women Sailors ranked from 11th to 3rd in the Sailing World coaches' poll rankings, the Stanford Women's Team finished the season a disappointing 7th overall at last week's Intercollegiate Sailing Association's National Women's Doublehanded Championship. The three-day regatta was held June 1-3 on Lake Travis in Austin, Texas and hosted by the University of Texas Sailing Team and Austin Yacht Club. Although 18 races in 3 days were scheduled for a complete rotation of the new Vanguard Sailboats supplied Flying Junior dinghies, the Race Committee was only able to get off 14 complete races.

The highlight of the regatta was Stanford's domination in B-Division, skippered by sophomore Caroline Young and numerous members of the Stanford Team, alternating with the changing wind conditions. Light, flukey wind on day one of the regatta meant only 2 races were sailed in each division. Young took the water with sophomore Becca Levin, and posted a 1,2 set. On day two, Young started with Levin, but alternated to freshman Evan Brown who was poised to go into A-Division for a struggling Liz Rountree. In what is often called "the longest day in college sailing," the race committee started races at 9:30 am and continued through 8:00 pm. With changing wind conditions throughout the day Brown was replaced by sophomore Alexa Binns for races 7-12. On day three, an approaching storm front wreaked havoc on the breeze, resulting in numerous delays while the race committee waited for the wind direction to solidify. As the day wore on, it became apparent that the regatta would not get to 18 races before the 5:00 pm time limit. Knowing she would only sail two more races in light air Young hit the water with Levin for the last two races. During race 13, the approaching storm front brought stronger wind, and the lightweight girls struggled to keep the boat under control. The duo finished 7th, enough to keep them ahead of Charleston. A quick crew change between races and heavy-air crew Jo Madsen hopped in to help Young keep the boat flat in the final race. Young/Madsen jumped the gun and started prematurely, forcing them to return to the start line and re-start. This put them firmly in last place. Both knew they could not afford a last place and still hold onto first place in B-Division. They fought the building breeze, caught every wind shift and passed 8 boats to finish 10th, enough to stay ahead of Harvard and Charleston to win B-Division with an impressive 10-point cushion.

Sailing in A-Division, junior Liz Rountree and crew, senior Julie Pitts struggled in the first two shifty races, earning a 10, 9 in the first set. On day two, Rountree/Pitts started the day with a 9, 5 and then a 5,10. These finishes put the Cardinal in 3rd overall, so in an effort to shave some points, Coaches Kehoe and Harrill made the call to sub in freshmen Evan Brown and Mariana Beardsworth. Brown took the water familiar with the race course, after crewing for Young in B-Division. Brown/Beardsworth earn a 12,13 then a 4, 8; unfortunately the 4 ended up in a disqualification after a protest with Dartmouth. The freshmen stayed in for one more set, earning a 13, 15 in the shifty evening breeze. On day three, Rountree/Pitts took the water after the long wind delay to earn a respectable 6, 10 in the final light air set. The A-Division earned 144 points for 12th place.

The combined A & B scores left the Cardinal in 7th overall. Coach Kehoe reflects the girls' disappointment in the 7th place finish, "these girls worked hard all year," he explained, "they will all return next year with one more year of valuable experience and the added determination that comes from past success." With the exception of senior Julie Pitts, this entire team is underclassmen who will be back next year.

The highest honor in college sailing is the All-America Team. This year ICSA named only 7 Women's All-Amerians. Stanford's Caroline Young was named to this elite squad, as the only sophomore and the only west coast sailor.

ICSA Women's Dinghy National Championship

More info: www.collegesailing.org
Official event photos: www.gtsphotos.com