Co-Ed Sailing Wins Moody Trophy

If this past weekend provides any indication, the Harvard co-ed sailing team may be poised to make some noise at Nationals later this month.

At the Moody Trophy regatta in Providence, RI on Saturday and Sunday, the Crimson finished first out of a crowded field of 19 teams. Racers competed in two divisions, riding in the same boats that will be used at next June's North American Team Championships.

The dynamic duo of junior Sean Doyle and sophomore Michelle Yu paced the Crimson by winning the A Division. Doyle and Yu, who also combined to place first at the Dinghy Cup earlier this month, finished 21 points ahead of its next closest competitor.

In the B Division, juniors Margaret Gill and Susan Bonney turned in an impressive fourth-place showing. The tandem finished just eight points behind second place and three points in back of third.

Together, Harvard's A and B teams combined for a convincing overall victory, finishing 36 points ahead of second-place Boston College.

"We are down to the home stretch before the New England Championships and Nationals and things seem to be coming together," Doyle said. "Everyone is practicing hard and sailing well."

The co-ed squad was actually split this weekend, with the rest of the team competing at the Admiral's Cup, hosted by the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy. The Crimson placed sixth overall out of 19 teams at that regatta.

Sophomores Clay Bischoff and Lema Kikuchi finished fourth in the A Division, while the team of freshman Cardwell Potts and sophomore Laura Knoll claimed second in the B Division.

The women's team, meanwhile, challenged for the Dellanbaugh Trophy at Brown University. The Crimson women finished eleventh at the regatta, which served as a final tune-up before Harvard competes at the New England Championships next weekend.

Racing coniditions were not entirely favorable this weekend, especially on Saturday. Despite the sunny weather and warm 50-degree temperatures, the shifty winds proved troubling for Harvard, which received a disqualification in one of its races.