April 6, 2008
NEW HAVEN, Conn. - The No. 2 Bulldogs again came out in front of the competition in winning the President's Trophy intersectional hosted by Boston University on Saturday and Sunday. The team improved upon its second-place performance in 2007 and scored 86 points over the 10 races in each division.
The team braved extremely cold conditions in the two days of sailing on the Charles River. Saturday was frustrating for the team as the wind was too light to sail in for much of the day, causing the competitors to wait for the wind to build. The breeze eventually filled in during the afternoon and allowed the team to complete four races in each division in a light three to six knot wind.
On Sunday, the cold continued, but the wind built considerably to 12-15 knots with puffs even higher. However, the wind was not extremely shifty as is common on the Charles River, so the team was able to use its superior boat speed to come out ahead of the competition. By winning the event, the team showed its versatility in performing well in all wind strengths.
Sailing in A Division were junior captain Kate Hagemann and freshman crew Elizabeth Brim. Hagemann and Brim placed fourth in their division with a 46-point total, only one point behind third place Brown. Despite there being 16 teams at the regatta, the squad almost always finished strongly, only finishing out of the top four boats three times.
The B Division boat of junior skipper Jane Macky and sophomore crew Marla Menninger similarly excelled in placing second in their division with a 40-point total. Macky and Menninger won three races and finished outside the top half of the competitors only once.
The team is next in action on Saturday and Sunday at the Duplin Trophy hosted by Boston College.
Report filed by Caleb Dorfman '09, Yale Sports Publicity