SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - Senior Luke Muller and freshman Christina Sakellaris swept the men's and women's Pacific Coast Collegiate Sailing Conference (PCCSC) singlehanded championships this past weekend, and qualified for the National Championships. Freshman Sophia Sole also punched a ticket to nationals with a runner-up finish to Sakellaris.
Muller won his third singlehanded conference championship. The 2014 and 2015 champion finshed first in 2017 with just 36 points. The Fort Pierce, Fla., native finished among the top five in all 16 races. He bested UC Santa Barbara freshman Luca Pierce by five points, and junior teammate and defending champion William Marshall, who finished with 53 points.
On the women's side, the Cardinal took four of the top six spots behind the freshman duo of Sakellaris and Sole. Sakellaris finished first 10 times and never placed lower than third. She finished with just 21 points, while Sole was second with 41 points. Sole won three of the last six races to hold off UC Santa Barbara's Simone Staff (47 points), and earn the last national qualifying spot. Senior Haley Fox was fifth with 85 points, while junior Olivia Gugliemini placed sixth (96).
The Cardinal trio will compete at the Intercollegiate Sailing Association Singlehanded National Championships Nov. 4-5 in St. Petersburg, Fla.
Next weekend, the Cardinal heads to a pair of regattas on the East Coast, and stays home for another. Stanford will be represented at the Truxtun Umsted in Annapolis, Md., the Yale Women's regatta in New Haven, Conn., and the Stoney Burke in Treasure Island, Calif.#GoStanford