BRIEF: Sailing Finishes Fourth in Charlestown

Harvard women’s sailing opened its spring season this weekend at the Charleston Women’s Interconference Regatta. Racing at the J. Stewart Walker Sailing Complex, the two Crimson boats competing in the regatta combined for 157 points. Harvard finished fourth of 14 teams, behind No. 3 Georgetown, No. 13 Vermont, and No. 1 Yale.

Harvard competed against squads from various conferences and regions, including its own NEISA, the SAISA and the MAISA. The unranked Crimson team also sailed against a number of ranked teams, beating No. 9 Charleston, No. 11 St. Mary’s, and No. 4 Navy.

In division A, the pair of junior Sophie Bermudez and senior Ashleigh Inglis competed for the Crimson, finishing with 95 points. The pair consistently crossed the finish line near the front of the pack, but a few low-placing races left them at seventh overall.

In division B, freshman Taylor Ladd and sophomore Emma Wheeler increased Harvard’s status, tallying 62 points to take second. Of their 14 races, the pair finished four of them in second place, and all but two in the top half of the division.

Both days saw fairly good conditions with winds of 6-14 knots coming from the NNE. Held on the Cooper River near host College of Charleston, the air temperature hovered around 50 degrees. Saturday also saw a weakening flood tide, while on Sunday racers had to contend with a strong outgoing tide.

This regatta marked the first of the spring season, during which all races are completed team style, with two people per boat. At Charleston, the division A pair sailed in FJs while division B competed in 420s.

Coming out of a fall season during which the Crimson placed top-10 in 16 regattas, the team prepares itself for a packed and competitive spring schedule.

—Staff writer Isabel DeLaura can be reached at idelaura@thecrimson.com.