Sailors Shine at N.E. Fall Championships

The Harvard and Radcliffe sailing teams reached a high point in their fall seasons this past weekend by capturing their respective de facto New England fall championships.

The Harvard team captured the Erwin H. Schell Trophy in a competition held at M.I.T. Meanwhile, Radcliffe won the Victorian Urn Trophy, in a competition which it hosted.

At M.I.T., the Crimson built up an early lead in the first morning of races and never lost it, even though the championship was decided in the last race of the competition. Harvard received its toughest challenges from Navy, Tufts, Connecticut College and B.U.

The tournament consisted of two divisions of 13 boats each, with each boat racing each other at least once in round-robin competition. The Crimson were led by skippers Gordon Burnes and Peter Wagner.

Burnes was on a hot streak, winning four of the first five races in the A division. With Wagner placing consistently in the top five of the B division, Harvard had an hefty 20-point lead by Saturday afternoon. However, the lead shrunk to six points by the end of the first day.

Sunday proved to be more difficult for the team. After the first race, one point separated each of the top four teams. Harvard's victory was not assured until the final race, when Burnes placed fifth and Wagner third.

Considering its third-place showing last weekend at the Hoyt Trophy regatta, where Harvard finished nine points behind Navy and Brown, and revealed the sometimes inconsistent racing of Crimson substitute skipper John Pernick, Harvard's showing was more than impressive.

"This weekend showed that things were finally coming together," said Penrick, who substituted for Wagner in some races. "Pete and Gordon both sailed really consistent."

Not only did the victory qualify Harvard for the Atlantic Coast Championships on the weekend of November 8 at New York, but it also ended a 25-year dry spell for the Schell Trophy.

Ten women's teams participated at the Victorian Urn in Cambridge, but Radcliffe, with skippers Jane Fogg and Julia Trottman, easily outdid the competition. The Black and White finished the competition with an 18-point lead over Brown, and a 30-point bulge over Dartmouth. It was Radcliffe's second overall victory of the fall season.

"We have a very strong women's team," Captain Fogg said, "but it's still difficult to win every weekend. We have been placing third and fourth consistently throughout the season."

Radcliffe has not won the Victorian Urn since 1982. This weekend's victory also ensures the team a spot in the Atlantic Coast.

Last weekend's performance was not as dramatic as the competition for Marchiando Trophy on October 18 and 19. The Radcliffe team fielded two sailors--while other teams had three--because of Fogg's injury. The heroics of Betsy Robinson and Susie Carter led the team to the championship round, only to suffer a loss to Brown.

This season marks the last one for Crimson sailing Coach Mike Horn, who, as varsity team member Jeff Kurland puts it, "has been the driving force for the sailing team for such a long time." Horn, in his 19th year, has been most supportive of the sailing program, especially the women.

"Coach Horn has stayed on here so long," Pernick said, "because he saw so much potential in us. We trying to prove he was right."