BRISTOL, R.I. - The Roger Williams University Sailing team put together an impressive performance this past weekend on the water, highlighted by a win at the NEISA Coed Dinghy Championship, hosted by URI. With the win, the Hawks qualified for the ICSA Coed Dinghy Semi-Finals at the end of the month in Long Beach.
At the NEISA Coed Dinghy Championship, the Hawks easily cruised to the victory, finishing in first with 72 points, 42 more than second place Brown University. In A Division, skipper Cy Thompson (St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands) had three different crew members, Alyssa Seifert (Duxbury, Mass.) started the first four races, then Sophie Bellacosa (Winchester, Mass.) raced for two, and Tyler Wilson (Woodville, Mass.) finished up the last six races. The four Hawks finished in first in their division with only 39 points, winning four of the races and finishing in the top four nine different times. In the “B” Division, skipper Alec Anderson (Tortola, BVI), was partnered up with Wilson for the first two races, Cameron Pimentel (Paget, Bermuda) for the middle eight races and Joshua Saltmarsh (Wayland, Mass.) to finish off the day. The Hawks finished first in their division as well, with 36 total points. Their run was highlighted by six first place finishes.
At the Gibb Freshman Champs, Roger Williams finished in second place with a total of 80 points, just trailing the hosts, Tufts University. The weather proved to be difficult with the many capsizes due to the heavy wind on the Mystic Lake. In A Division, Connor Needham (Shelter Island, N.Y.) and Alexander Rudkin (Middleton, R.I.) sailed to earn 23 points for the team, the lowest point total among all divisions. At B Division, Ian Hollerbach (Grosse Point Park, Mich.) and Alexi Schwartzkopff (Trumbull, Conn.) sailed together, earning 57 points to be added to the final score.
In the Tufts Invitational, the Hawks finished in third place with 108 points, just finishing behind the two Tufts teams entered and six points shy of taking second. In the A Division, Needham and Alex Miller (Cape Elizabeth, Maine) sailed together earning 46 points. The duo won one of the races and finished in the top three six times. In the B Division, Hollerbach and Megan Carlson (New Providence, N.J.) finished with 62 points, earning three places in the top five.
At the Savin Hill Invitational, hosted by Boston College, the Hawks placed second overall, just missing another win on the weekend via a tiebreaker with BC, as both team finished with 99 points on the day. Carlson, Andrew Tamblyn (Little Silver, N.J.), Dan Goldman (Bradenton, Fla.), and Richard Jordan represented the Hawks at A Division, finishing second in the division with 53 points on the strength of six top-three finishes with a win and two runners-up. At B Division, Eric Schwarm (Freeport, Maine) and Carleton Huntsberger (North Port, Maine) claimed the top spot in the division, totaling 46 points and finishing fifth or better at every race but one.
Next weekend, the Hawks will be at home for the Staake Trophy team racing regatta at 9:30 a.m. The team will also be competing in the 24th Thompson Trophy in New London, Conn., hosted by Connecticut College.
