After winning the semifinals at the Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association national championship last year along with a 16th place finish at the co-ed national championship, the Connecticut College Sailing Team plans to build on their previous season with great hopes and promise of an exceptional season this spring. While many of the Camels of our community were on spring break, relaxing at home or tanning and vacationing at exotic places, the Camels on the water were on the freezing and windy Thames River as well as Saint Mary’s River in Maryland. On the Thames, often the Camels would need to chip their way out of the ice-covered river in order to practice. The late winter has caused serious difficulties for other New England sailing teams and Sophomore Cooper Nefsky feels “these conditions in New England will give us an edge, as we are one of the only teams in New England able to practice at this point.” Another sophomore, Rebecca Quirke, said “the spring training preseason was rewarding. Although mid 30 degree weather is not ideal for our water sport, the team bonded over breaking the ice and even sometimes swimming in the frigid water.” They both concluded that the Connecticut College Sailing team had “successfully beat out Mother Nature.” Although the conditions were strenuous, Nefsky believes “the squad had a very strong preseason and is looking very encouraging for the rest of the spring.” Quirke also added that they “hope to use this momentum, going forward, as preparation for the spring season,” saying, “spring training was a massive success and the first year sailors have brought excellence in both skills and attitude.”
In Maryland, the Women’s team sailed in the Saint Mary’s Women Intersectional Regatta where they competed for some great results. In the B division, rookie skipper Emilia Clementi along with classmates Alexandra Maurillo, Isabelle Pieper and Haley Kachmar scored 101 points cruising to seventh place. In the A division, first year skipper Charlotte List was joined by Alexandra Maurillo and Isabelle Pieper in 17th place with 184 points for the Camels. Freshman Charlotte List and senior Alex Isreal have been honored as the New England Intercollegiate Sailing Association sailors of the week for their recent breakout performances. At the Navy Women’s Intersectional, List and Israel had the highest New England finish in B division, locking up 3rd place after 4 races on March 15.
The Connecticut College Sailing Team strives in a division comparable to NCAA Division I sports and has had major success with both the current squad and with the alumni. Of the 16 American sailors competing in the 2012 London Olympics, two of them were Connecticut College alumni. Amanda Clark in the class of 2005 and Bob Willis of 2009 made not only the United States, but also Connecticut College Camels proud in the Olympics. This has set the tone for excellence at Connecticut College, and the sailors continue to compete at an extremely high level to meet these standards. The high standards in the sport, however, come with the responsibility and rigor of a Connecticut College education. Rebecca Quirke said, “The caliber of competition we encounter has students travelling as far west as Oregon, south as Texas and north as Maine for regattas weekly, while trying to juggle the NESCAC caliber of school work.” As the sailing team is consistently ranked in the top 20 teams in the country, the Camels plan to continue their success and move up the ranks this spring season. With spirits up from the successful preseason, the Camels plan to build on last year’s achievements. Quirk said, “This year I believe we will improve on last year’s finish considering our success in the preseason and the talent on this team.” •
