ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Navy's intercollegiate sailing highlighted its two-event weekend with a victory at the Truxtun Umsted Coed Showcase in Annapolis, while also competing at the Tom Curtis Memorial Regatta in Washington, D.C.
In the second weekend of interconference competition on the college sailing circuit, the Midshipmen served as the host of one of two first-round coed showcase regattas. In the first round, 36 teams from around the country are seeded into two different events with the top nine teams from each of the two regattas moving on to the finals in two weeks with the final 18 teams competing in a consolation regatta. This year's draw saw traditional powerhouses placed in the Truxtun Umsted Regatta at Navy.
The first day of the event provided a challenge for the fleet with shifty and fickle winds. The Midshipmen were in a tight battle in the top six with Georgetown, Yale, Charleston, Brown and MIT – which is a group of teams that have combined to win the last eight college sailing coed national championships. Following the first day of sailing, Georgetown held a narrow lead over Navy for the top spot with a group of teams close behind.
Sunday was overcast and featured winds from the south at 6-12 knots. The Hoyas and Midshipmen started to pull away from the pack on Sunday with Georgetown starting to increase its lead in the morning. However, senior captain
Parker Loftus and crew
Kimmie Leonard finished strong to close out the competition in the B division with four first-place finishes and a runner-up finish. Navy took its first lead of the regatta after race 17 A and the Midshipmen never looked back. Navy won the event by 16 points overall. Loftus and Leonard placed fourth in the B division with
JC Hermus and
Sally Johnson sailing strong all weekend to win the A division.
The Midshipmen's victory at the Truxtun Umsted Regatta was the first time they have won the event in over 20 years.
Navy also had three boats compete in the Tom Curtis Memorial Regatta at Georgetown. The event featured boats from six different programs, competing in one combined division. In a very tight competition,
Caden Scheiblauer and
Fiona Lobon were the top Navy boat with a sixth-place finish in the 18-boat fleet.
Gavin McJones and
Carlyn Blauvelt placed ninth and
Gray Benson and
Colin MacGillivray placed 12th overall.
This coming weekend, Navy competes in three events, which includes hosting the Jen Harris Women's Showcase in Annapolis.
