ANNAPOLIS, Md. – The Navy intercollegiate sailing team posted a pair of top-3 finishes on Sunday, as the Midshipmen opened the 2023-24 season by hosting the Laser South Regatta and Navy Women's Fall Regatta in Annapolis while also sending crews to the Riley Cup in Norfolk, Va.
 
Navy's first competition weekend of the fall was plagued by light winds and stormy weather, but the team was still able to get quality competition in and score solid results.
 
The Laser South was the first round of conference qualifiers in open singlehanded sailing and featured 17 competitors. Due to light wind and lightning nearby, the fleet was only able to sail two races on Saturday and three on Sunday. Senior sailor Trent Shaw shined through the conditions, finishing in the top-5 of every race to claim second overall, while freshmen Teddy Martin and Logan Hayes finished 7th overall and 15th overall, respectively. Both Shaw and Martin qualified to compete in the Carl Van Duyne MAISA Singlehanded Championship on Sept. 30. 
 
The Navy Women's Fall Regatta had one less race overall than the Laser South, and Navy wound up third overall in the nine-team field. The boats sailed in one combined division where sophomore Ava Farley and senior Madeline Smith finished fourth, while fellow seniors Aubin Hattendorf and Catherine Aitken place sixth out of 18 boats.
 
Navy had two teams compete in the 14-team Riley Cup, hosted by Old Dominion in Norfolk. Another event plagued by light winds and storms, only two races per division were completed each day. The top Navy team finished fourth overall, as sophomores Jack Welburn and Darby Graham finished fifth in the "A" division while freshman George Carty and sophomore Ella Niehoff were third in the "B" division. Navy's other team wound up ninth, with sophomores Margo Cicero and Alex Brenia coming in 11th in the "A" division and freshmen Spencer Dominguez and Mary Dwyer placing 6th in the "B" division.
 
Navy returns to action on Sept. 16-17, hosting the Chesapeake Invitational and the Faye Bennet MAISA Women's Singlehanded Championship in Annapolis.