GW Sailing Opens Spring Season with Successful Weekend

Sunday, February 28

Hampton College

All Day

George Washington University

Pirate Team Race

Kai Friesecke and Belle Strachan helped GW finish 7th in Division B at the Truxton Umstead regatta

2/29/2016 12:00:00 AM | Sailing

Feb. 29, 2016

The George Washington Sailing team opened its spring slate by competing at a pair of regattas over the weekend, placing seventh in the Charleston Women's Regatta and second in the Pirate Team Race.

Competing against a strong field at the Charleston Women's Regatta, GW was outpaced by a number of ranked teams but still recorded strong finishes in several races. Among the 14-team field, the Colonial A boat of skipper Miranda Bakos and crew Belle Strachan had five top-5 finishes in 14 races, highlighted by a second-place finish in race 12.

In B Division, Hannah McNomee and Madison Oleson started strong with a second-place and first-place finish in the first two races, before ultimately recording two first-place and six top-5 finishes overall. The duo ended the weekend in eighth place of a tightly-packed field.

At the Pirate Team Race, GW sent a field of freshmen and sophomores and placed second among six teams. Three boats took the field for GW: skipper Andrew Sheerin and crew Shira Golub, skipper Derek Poon-Tip and crew Mercedes McPhee, and skipper Sam White and crew Alexandra Fayer, with each team sailing in a head-to-head race against the other teams in a round-robin format.

The Colonials finished the weekend with a 12-3 record, just behind St. Mary's College of Maryland which was 13-2.

"Both regattas were good building, early-season experiences for the group," said head coach John Pearce. "We're really excited for the GW Team Race this weekend with some great teams competing, and the season is really going to get ramped up from there."

The GW Team Race gets underway on Saturday with a field of top MAISA teams: Cornell, Fordham, Hobart & William Smith, Naval Academy, and St. Mary's. GW welcomes parents and alumni to attend the regatta and celebrate Parents Weekend with the team. Interested parents and alumni are encouraged to RSVP.