The Sperry Women’s National Championship continued today on the Elizabeth River, hosted by Old Dominion University. Eighteen collegiate teams advanced from the previous two days of competition in the Semifinals to make it to the Finals racing. The teams are vying for the national title and the Gerald C. Miller Trophy.
 
Racing got underway around 10 a.m. and the temperatures heated up into the 80s under sunny skies. The winds were from the north and northeast today, which is different from the previous two days of racing and it brought a variety of conditions. At times the wind was light around 4-6 knots and at others it was steady around 8-12 knots.

Racing continued today on the Elizabeth River out of the Old Dominion Sailing Center in the second day of the Sperry Women’s Semifinals. Thirty-six collegiate sailing teams from across the nation qualified to compete in these Semifinals to determine the top 18 teams who will advance to the Finals, which begin tomorrow at 10 a.m. The 36 teams are divided into two fleets of 18 teams, Western and Eastern Semifinal groups, the top nine from each fleet will make up the 18 teams who compete in the final championship.

Today the Eastern and Western fleets sailed in FJs and Z420s on windward leeward courses with four legs. B-division completed six races today and A-division completed 4 for a total of 12 races for the regatta in both divisions and fleets.

The Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association (ICSA) honored four individuals for their contributions to the sport of college sailing by inducting them into the ICSA Hall of Fame at today’s annual ICSA Meeting, which is the kick off to the Spring College Sailing National Championships, hosted by Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Va.
 
Kevin Coakley (Duxbury, Mass.) was recognized with the James Rousmaniere Award for student leadership; Gary Bodie (Hampton, Va.) was honored with the Lifetime Service Award; Mitch Brindley (Smithfield, Va.) was awarded the Graham Hall Award for outstanding service by a college sailing professional; and Abby Reeg (Spring Lake, Mich.) was awarded Outstanding Service by a volunteer.

The Intercollegiate Sailing Association’s (ICSA) three spring national championships, Sperry College Sailing Women’s National Semifinal and Final Championships, LaserPerformance College Sailing Team Race National Championship, and the Gill College Sailing National Semifinal and Final Championships commence in one week on Tuesday, May 22. The Women’s event will last for four days immediately followed by the Team Race championship on May 26, lasting for three days and the Coed championship on May 29, lasting for four days.

The three events will be hosted by Old Dominion University at the ODU Sailing Center in Norfolk, Va. These championships are the culmination of two seasons of intense competition and include the top schools from across the nation vying for the championship titles. Immediately following the racing for each of the regattas there will be a trophy ceremony honoring the top finishers.

2018nationals.collegesailing.org