SAN DIEGO, Calif. – Stanford finished ninth at the Sperry ICSA Women’s National Championship on Friday at the San Diego Yacht Club.
"We have an incredible team of 10 ladies who did a great job of staying focused and working hard throughout the event,” said assistant coach Atlantic Brugman, the primary coach of the Cardinal women’s fleet. “It was a very competitive event and we had a young team sailing, which was a challenge. The girls rose to the occasion and came together as a team. We are proud of what they accomplished and can't wait to see what these ladies can do next year.”
Freshman skipper Martina Sly and senior crew Yuki Yoshiyasu led the charge for the Cardinal, finishing third in the B-division. The pair placed in the top six in 11 of 18 races, while Sly was the highest-finishing freshman in the fleet.
"The regatta was very competitive but we were able to have fun and stay focused throughout the event,” said Yoshiyasu. “It was an awesome way to end my four years of college sailing."
In the A-division, freshman skipper Mimi El-Khazindar, sophomore skipper Julia Lambert, sophomore crew Elena VandenBerg and freshman crew Kathryn Booker finished 16th.
Last day of Nationals and the ladies are ready to GoGo! #gogosqueez #werunongogos
A photo posted by Stanfordsailing (@stanfordsailing) on May 27, 2016 at 9:22am PDT
Stanford started the regatta on Tuesday in the eastern semifinal, consisting of 18 schools with the top nine advancing to the finals. The Cardinal ended the first day in 10th, but sailed its way into the top-nine on Wednesday, finishing seventh.
El-Khazindar and VandenBerg sailed nearly every race in the A-division, with White and Booker deputizing for two races. El-Khazindar and VandenBerg led the charge on Wednesday afternoon, finishing in the top six in three of the final four A-class races with a win and a third-place finish. Stanford took 11th place in the A-division.
In the B-division, Sly with crews Yoshiyasu and Steele finished second with 66 points. Skippering every race, Sly finished in the top five nine out of 13 times, while Yoshiyasu and Steele split time as her crew for the semifinal.
"It was a great opportunity to compete against the best womens sailors in the country and awesome to know that we have the potential to be near the top next year,” said Sly.
Congrats @StanfordSailing on a great season. Youngins' stepped up--bright future. #GoStanford pic.twitter.com/3j4rN4N4b2
— Heather M. Owen (@H_MOwen) May 27, 2016
ICSA Nationals continue tomorrow with the Laserperformance Team Race National Championship. The first round of 120 head-to-head races will start Saturday morning with the finals set to take place on Monday, May 30. The field is narrowed to eight teams before a final four to determine the national champion. The Cardinal finished third last season, and enters the regatta ranked sixth.
Live results and a live stream will be available at GoStanford.com.
—#GoStanford—