NEW ORLEANS, La. – The Navy intercollegiate sailing team traveled to New Orleans this week for the 2026 ICSA Team Race National Championship, ultimately finishing eighth overall with an 11-10 record.
 
Racing began Thursday under sunny skies with temperatures in the high 70s to low 80s and the wind blowing from the southeast at 5-12 knots, remaining puffy and shifty as it came over the land. A fair amount of chop made it difficult to keep the boats moving during team racing maneuvers, but Navy got off to a strong start, finishing the first day with a 7-3 record.
 
On Friday, the wind shifted further south at 8-15 knots. While the water was flatter, conditions remained puffy and shifty and a less-than-favorable forecast for Saturday led to organizers pushing to complete as much of the regatta as possible on the second day.
 
As the initial 16-team round robin concluded, Navy sailed well and comfortably advanced to the top-eight round with a 10-5 record. It was the first time the Midshipmen advanced that far since 2022, having narrowly missed out last year on a tiebreaker.
 
In the top eight, Navy won its first race but struggled on the starting line in subsequent races. While the Mids fought hard to get back into the matchups, the elite level of competition proved too challenging to steal races from behind. At the end of the round, the scores were extremely tight, and Navy's final race against Dartmouth was a battle to earn the last spot in the final four. Dartmouth gained an early lead it never relinquished, bringing Navy's team-racing season to an end
 
Navy's team of skippers included seniors Nathan Smith and Jack Welburn, junior Henry Allgeier and sophomore Owen MacWilliams. They were joined by crews including seniors Ellie Alex and Darby Graham, junior Fiona Cullen and sophomore Sarah McNelly. The group put forth a tremendous effort and sailed well in challenging conditions against difficult competition.