Harvard Sailing Dominates Victorian Urn Trophy

Harvard sailing closed its fall regular season with a commanding victory at the Victorian Urn Trophy this past weekend, finishing 50 points ahead of the next closest teams. The Crimson also competed in three other regattas, placing fifth at the Schell Trophy, ninth at the Terrier Invitational, and tenth at the Nickerson Trophy.

The Victorian Urn victory marked Harvard’s second title at the event in the last three years and came just two weeks after the women’s team captured its first-ever Atlantic Coast Championship Final. Finishing first in both the A and B Divisions, the Crimson demonstrated the consistency and depth that have defined its success this fall.

“I think it’s a culmination of their work throughout the semester,” head coach Michael O’Connor said. “They have worked really well together to be good in a range of conditions, and so it doesn’t really matter whether the wind is light or it’s breezy. They’re ready for it.”

Competing at the Dartmouth-hosted Victorian Urn Trophy in Enfield, N.H., Harvard finished with just 79 points, well ahead of Tufts and Roger Williams, which tied for second with 129 apiece.

Captain Zoey Ziskind led the A Division alongside senior crews Peyton Hadfield and Christina Chen, while junior skipper Kate Danielson competed in the B Division with Chen and senior JJ Drummond.

The Crimson’s A Division team recorded five race victories and 11 top-five finishes across 14 races, accumulating just 40 points. Harvard’s B Division sailors were similarly successful, finishing with 39 points and placing in the top five in 11 of their 12 races.

For Ziskind, the team’s success came in part from its familiarity with the challenging conditions at the Dartmouth venue.

Unlike open-water courses, where winds can be more consistent, the lake’s surrounding landscape creates unpredictable gusts and changing wind patterns. Ziskind explained that practicing on the Charles River had prepared the team to recognize those changes and adjust accordingly.

“Being on the Charles really trains your eyes to see the darker water,” Ziskind said. “You have to really notice the differences in the ripples on the water, which sounds crazy, but I think it worked for us this weekend.”

Rather than only relying on boat speed, Harvard’s sailors focused on identifying approaching gusts, known as puffs, and positioning themselves to take advantage of stronger winds.

Hadfield emphasized that communication between skipper and crew was just as important as staying near the front of the pack.

“One of our big focuses for the weekend was communication, both for what was going on in the boat and outside of the boat,” Hadfield said. “I think we were doing a really great job managing both the water and the fleet.”

Beyond their performance on the water, the sailors credited their success to the strong relationships they had built over several seasons together.

The Victorian Urn lineup featured four seniors and one junior, ensuring that the Crimson fielded an experienced group whose familiarity with one another translated into confidence on the water.

“We’ve all been working together and been on the same team for several years now,” Hadfield said. “I think this weekend was kind of a culmination of a lot of great efforts over the last few years.”

Ziskind echoed that sentiment, emphasizing the importance of the team’s supportive environment.

“I think the team has done a really good job of supporting each other,” the captain said. “We’ve all just learned how to work really well together.”

The win also continued an impressive stretch for Harvard’s women’s program. After capturing its first Women’s ACC Final championship in October, the Crimson has established itself as one of the strongest teams in collegiate sailing.

“I think we’re the team to beat,” O’Connor said, pointing to the program’s four returning All-American starters. “Our experience is really paying off at this point because our women are making good decisions and they’re executing their game plan very well.”

For Harvard’s seniors, the victory carried more significance as their final regular-season fall fleet racing competition.

“It was just a really great way for us to all conclude our regular season fleet racing college careers,” Hadfield said.

While the women’s team dominated at the Victorian Urn, the Crimson faced tougher competition at the Schell Trophy in Burlington, Vt., finishing fifth with 188 points.

Harvard entered the weekend as defending champions after winning last year’s competition by a single point over Yale in a dramatic final race. This year, the Bulldogs won with 129 points, followed by Brown, Boston College, and Roger Williams.

Junior Harrison Strom and freshman Zia Zucker represented Harvard in the A Division, scoring three race victories and finishing with 104 points. Sophomore Jacob Posner and junior Amelie Zucker competed in the B Division, scoring seven top-three finishes and 84 points.

Despite the fifth-place result, O’Connor remained encouraged by the team’s ability to compete against strong opponents.

“We proved that we have the boat speed to compete with all the best teams,” O’Connor said. “And when we execute our game plan properly, we can win races.”

O’Connor also pointed to the difference in experience between this year’s lineup and the veteran sailors who won last season’s championship.

“When we won it last year, we had two seniors skippering who had sailed in the event three or four times each,” he said. “Now our starters, it was their first time starting in this event.”

Although Harvard was unable to defend its title, the regatta provided valuable experience against some of the strongest teams in the New England conference.

Harvard’s younger sailors also gained competitive experience at the Nickerson Trophy and Terrier Invitational, finishing tenth and ninth, respectively.

At the Nickerson Trophy, hosted by Tufts in Medford, Mass., the Crimson played an all-freshman roster.

Max Wolfensberger and Erika Tinmouth competed in the A Division, finishing with 76 points, while Louise Martin and Elizabeth Jacobsson represented Harvard in the B Division with 106 points.

The Crimson’s combined 182 points tied Rhode Island, but Harvard ultimately finished tenth following a tiebreaker.

Wolfensberger and Tinmouth opened the regatta with second-place finishes in each of their first two races, demonstrating their potential despite inconsistent results later in the competition.

O’Connor credited some of that inconsistency to the challenging conditions and the sailors’ limited experience competing together.

“Max Wolfensberger is, I think, one of the top first-year sailors in the class this year, and he’s proven that he can win races,” O’Connor said.

He was particularly encouraged by the improvement of Martin and Jacobsson, who were also sailing together for the first time.

“They improved dramatically from the beginning of the regatta to the end,” O’Connor said. “I enjoyed watching them race near the top of the fleet on the second day, which is something they were unable to do on the first day.”

At the one-day Terrier Invitational, hosted by Boston University, Harvard finished ninth with 233 points. Roger Williams won the event with 99 points.

Freshmen Pax Huybers and Whitney Pickett competed in the A Division, finishing with 105 points, while sophomore Grace Naylor and freshman Noelle Brighton recorded 128 points in the B Division.

Despite the mixed results, O’Connor remained focused on the younger sailors’ growth and development.

“I don’t think it’s translating into the consistency that we want, but I think it is trending in that direction,” O’Connor said. “Our first-years have all worked together to get better, and they’ve supported one another.”

With the fall regular season complete, Harvard will turn its attention to the ICSA Women’s Singlehanded Championships on Nov. 7 and 8 in Larchmont, N.Y., where Danielson and freshman Grace Montgomery will represent the Crimson.

O’Connor expressed confidence in both sailors, particularly Danielson, whose experience and success in stronger winds could make her a contender for the national title.

“I would think that Kate is one of the favorites,” O’Connor said. “If we do get some breeze, I think she’ll be very, very hard to beat.”

Looking ahead, Harvard will shift to team racing in the spring, building on a fall season filled with championship victories and opportunities for growth.

O’Connor identified the development of effective skipper-crew partnerships as one of the team’s most significant improvements.

“I think we’ve made the most progress in the synthesis of our skipper and crew combinations,” O’Connor said. “We’re really getting people into the roles that they are best suited for.”

For the Crimson’s veteran sailors, the Victorian Urn victory offered a fitting conclusion to their final regular-season fall campaign. For the younger members of the team, the weekend provided another opportunity to build the experience necessary to compete at the highest level.

As Harvard prepares for the spring, its experienced lineup and developing talent suggest the program will look to build on an already successful fall season.

—Staff writer Tamar H. Scheinfeld can be reached at [email protected].