George Washington University Athletics
George Washington University
MAISA Coed Championship for the America's Trophy
GW Sailing Qualifies for ICSA Coed Nationals
5/2/2016 12:00:00 AM | Sailing
The George Washington sailing team added another achievement to what is already the most successful season in program history by qualifying for the ICSA Coed Nationals over the weekend.
The Colonials, who had already qualified for the women's division of nationals, needed a top-9 finish at the MAISA Coed Championship for the America Trophy to earn a spot in coed nationals. GW was easily able to secure the berth - the first in team history - by finishing fourth.
Brendan Shanahan and Miranda Bakos teamed up in A Division for the Colonials and secured a fifth place finish, while Kai Friesecke and Riley Legault took third place in B Division. GW led the competition, which included 18 teams, after the first day of competition on Saturday, and held on to the lead through races 14A and 14B on Sunday.
In the last six races of the day, however, GW was overtaken by St. Mary's, Georgetown and Navy.
"We had a big variety of conditions and a number of quality competitors," said head coach John Pearce. "Nothing really compares to the conference championship each year in terms of intensity and the quality of the fleet. This was a classic, with us leading and having a bunch of great teams chasing us. We left a little on the table in terms of we were in position to potentially win the regatta, but just being near the top of this fleet is a huge accomplishment. Going to nationals we're looking to keep working our way up the fleet."
Shanahan and Bakos provided steady racing for the Colonials, finishing in the top half of the field in 14 of 17 races, including one win and five top threes. Friesecke and Legault, meanwhile, were in the top 5 in nine of the first 10 races and won race 13.
The Colonials now set their sights on nationals which will be held May 31-June 3 in San Diego.
