MCSA Qualifier for the Collegiate Match Race Championship
October 19-20, 2013
Sail Sheboygan and the Sheboygan Yacht Club hosted The Midwest Collegiate Sailing Association (MCSA) qualifier for the National Match Racing Championship October 19 and 20. Six teams representing the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC), the University of Michigan (UM), Michigan State University (MSU), the University of Minnesota (UMN), Ohio State University (OSU) and the University of Wisconsin (UW) raced each other for the right to represent the association at the national championship being held in St. Petersburg, Florida in November.
The teams sailed a double round robin Saturday in shifty and puffy west winds. UM finished the day on top with 9 wins and their only loss came at the hands of UMN. UW and UMN each finished the double round robin with 7 wins with UW winning the tie breaker. Finishing out the top 4 to move on to the semi-final stage was MSU with 5 wins.
UM skipper, Will Cyr, did a great job of controlling the UW team skippered by Whitney Kent during the pre-start of the first race of the finals and led around the course to the leeward gate with a 2-boat lead. UM choose the left gate and UW choose the right. Kent and her team found better pressure on the right side of the course and when the teams tacked back, it was UW crossing ahead of UM. UW held onto their lead and won race 1. The pre-start of race 2 was tactically very different from the constant maneuvering that took place in race 1. UM set up to leeward of UW pinning them to the right of the start line. Both boats held their positions until timing their final approach to the start. UM was able to round the windward ahead, but was passed by UW at the top of the downwind leg. Both boats gybed and UM responded to UW’s luff and re-took the lead to tie the series 1-1. In the winner takes all match, again the pre-start was action packed with UW leading the way back. It appeared UW would force UM in behind at the start, but at the last second left enough space for UM to start to windward. A luff by UW and response by UM was green-flagged by the umpires and the teams were off neck and neck, covering each other’s tacks upwind. UM maintained starboard control and extended their lead to the leeward mark, where again the teams rounded opposite gates. But it was UM rounding the right gate and holding onto their lead to win the regatta.
The UMN team skippered by Drake Lundeen fended off MSU’s William Weiland in the petit-finals to finish in 3rd place, and OSU, skippered by David Aspery beat the UIC team led by Olivia Zwierski-Moran to finish 5th.
Complete standings:
- University of Michigan, Will Cyr
- University of Wisconsin, Whitney Kent
- University of Minnesota, Drake Lundeen
- Michigan State University, William Weiland
- Ohio State University, David Aspery
- University of Illinois Chicago, Olivia Zwierski-Moran
