Stanford's Strong Start

NEWPORT, R.I. - Ninth-ranked Stanford overcame early adversity at the Sperry Women’s Nationals today to finish day one in second place in the west regional semifinal. 
 
The first of three events at the 10-day ICSA Sailing National Championship, the 28-team women’s field is split into two 14-team regional semifinals. Nine teams from each semifinal will earn a spot in Thursday’s final round. 
 
With 14 total races in the books, Stanford sits comfortably in second place in its two-division regional semifinal. Skippered by sophomore Lily Katz with freshman crew Kennedy Placek, the Cardinal A-unit resiliently turned it around after an average start. 
 
Katz and Placek struggled initially, starting the championship with four finishes in the middle of the pack. However, the young duo rallied with pairs of second and fourth-place finishes to end day one, good enough for fourth place in the A-division. 
 
In the B-division, the Cardinal was represented by sophomore skipper Maeve White and freshman crew Grace Lucas. Stanford’s B-unit was consistently strong all day, not once finishing outside the top five in six races. 
 
With a total of 66 points, Stanford trails first-place Yale by 34 points and holds a slender four-point lead over third-place Boston College. Action continues tomorrow from Newport, Rhode Island, with live coverage available at collegesailing.org.