George Washington University Athletics
George Washington University
Navy Spring Regatta
GW Sailing Finishes Sixth at Navy Spring Regatta
4/18/2016 12:00:00 AM | Sailing
The George Washington sailing team competed in a trio of interconference regattas last weekend and had a strong effort at the Navy Spring Regatta with a sixth-place finish in a field of 19.
Amid beautiful weather in Annapolis and facing some of the top teams in both the MAISA conference and nationally, GW had a veteran group of sailors in Brendan Shanahan, Miranda Bakos, Kai Friesecke and Riley Legault. Racing in Division A, Shanahan and Bakos overcame a somewhat slow start by recording top-five finishes seven times across races 3-10, including a win in race 6, resulting in a fifth-place finish in the division.
In Division B, Friesecke and Legault posted seven top-five finishes in the 12 total races, including three second-place finishes, to grab eighth place.
"We were able to really build momentum throughout the weekend and finish up there with some of the top teams in our conference and nationally," said head coach John Pearce. "We still felt like we left some opportunities on the table, and we have one more weekend to build up to the coed championship in two weeks. We have some things to work on but we feel good about where we are."
The Colonials sent younger teams to the Owen Trophy, hosted by Cornell, and the Thompson Trophy, hosted by the U.S. Coast Guard Academy. GW finished ninth in the 16-team field at the Owen Trophy, and 15th in the 17-team field at the Thompson Trophy.
"We had very young teams at both the Owen Trophy and Thompson Trophy, and while we had some moments, we struggled with the talent and experience of the competition," said Pearce. "It's good to see those strings of races where we get a couple of top-fives in a row, and we know it's a building process. It's good for the younger sailors to get out there racing against the top competition and see where they are so they know what they're striving for."
GW now turns it's attention to championship racing, as the MAISA Women's Championship will be held this weekend before the coed championship the following weekend.
"The next two weeks are all about peaking," said Pearce. "It's time for us to put our best foot forward."
