Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Sailing | Women, Coeds Win MAISA

GU HOYAS The No. 14 women’s sailing team and No. 2 coed squad won their respective events at the MAISA regatta in Annapolis, Md.
GU HOYAS
The No. 14 women’s sailing team and No. 2 coed squad won their respective events at the MAISA regatta in Annapolis, Md.

The Georgetown sailing teams traveled to Annapolis, Md., this past weekend to compete in the Middle Atlantic Intercollegiate Sailing Association (MAISA) Championships.

The women’s team competed in the Women’s MAISA Conference Championship, and the coed team competed in the regional qualifier for the Coed MAISA Championship.

The women’s team, currently ranked 14th in the country, placed first in its regatta, beating the second-place Naval Academy by an impressive 43 points.

“Regattas can be very close,” Callahan said. “It can be hard to put points on the top teams. Typically, if you win by a lot, you’re winning by about 20 points.”
The women’s regatta featured the top 15 teams from the conference, most of which the team had not faced before.

“This was our first time competing against most of these teams this year. Going into the [MAISA] Conference Championship we hadn’t been to many regattas on the women’s circuit,” Head Coach Michael Callahan said.

According to Callahan, senior Katia DaSilva was one of the best performers this weekend for the women’s team. DaSilva sailed with senior Katie Olsen on Saturday and with junior Elizabeth Mullarney on Sunday. The Olsen and Mullarney won the last eight races in a row, and nine out of the 14 races.
Callahan believes that the women’s team has begun its season stronger this year than it has in years past.

“I would say for this season we’ve started out better,” Callahan said. “We’re deeper than we have been in the past, and I think all the girls are sailing well and improving every day.”

The coed team, currently ranked second in the country, competed in the regional qualifier for the MAISA Championship. While it was not as significant as the women’s event, it was still important to gauge the team’s progress thus far.

“There’s a lot of pressure going into it,” said Callahan. “The competition isn’t the best we’ll see all year but you have to perform well.”

Like the women’s team, the coed team also finished first, beating second-place St. Mary’s College by nine points.

Despite this first place finish, Callahan still called the coed team’s performance “average.”

“We could have done better,” Callahan said. “It’s about beating your personal bests and we were not beating our personal bests.”

Juniors Sean Golden and Isabelle Luzuriaga finished first in the B-Division. Out of 15 races, the duo secured 10 first-place finishes.

“Sean and Isabelle have been getting better throughout their three years at Georgetown,” Callahan said. “They continue to improve with their boat-handling and their speed. They are sailing at a higher level than they have in the past.”

Besides sailors in the A-Division not performing at their best, Callahan cited Golden and Luzuriaga as the reason the team won the regatta.

In the spring, the coed and women’s teams will compete in the MAISA National Championship. According to Callahan, the competition will be much tougher.

“Just winning our conference isn’t enough,” Callahan said. “We’re going to have to do well against top teams from New England like Yale and Boston College.”

All in all, however, Callahan believes “things are going in the right direction.”

The teams have four upcoming events this weekend, one for the women’s team and three for the coed team, the most notable being the Tom Curtis Memorial Regatta at the Washington Sailing Marina on Saturday, Oct. 11. Junior Greg Martinez will also attempt to qualify for the Coed Single-Handed National Championship, an event that he won last year.

Leave a Comment
Donate to The Hoya

Your donation will support the student journalists of Georgetown University. Your contribution will allow us to purchase equipment and cover our annual website hosting costs.

More to Discover
Donate to The Hoya

Comments (0)

All The Hoya Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *