MASSA Team Championship and Baker Qualifier

Having qualified in their leagues, 10 teams from the Mid-Atlantic district met on the Lafayette River to vie for the districts allotted 2 berths in the Baker National Team Race and 2 berths in the National Invitational Tournament. Sailors were met with overcast skies, relatively flat water, an temperatures that reached the mid 60's. Perfect for team racing, the wind was generally from SSE at 6-12 mph with gusts into the mid teens and significant oscillations challenging the mark team throughout the day.

First warning was promptly at 9:30AM. The regatta completed the first round robin of 45 races with Severn leading (9-0), followed by Christian Brothers in second (7-2), and Norfolk Academy, Spalding, and Hampton Roads Academy tying for third with (6-3). We continued racing and accomplished 73 races for the day leaving Severn in first place with (14-1),Christian Brothers in second (13-3), and Norfolk Academy in third (11-4).

Racing will resume tomorrow with race 74. The goal is to complete the second round robin and a final 4.

Sailors reconvened at the Lafayette River to find morning SSW winds abruptly varying between 8-15 MPH with with gusts varying up into the high teens, that persisted through the remainder of the regatta. Oscillations were significant. Just before noon, the wind gyrated to WSW, then SW, back to W, SSW and finally due W just before 1PM. Seas were lumpy. Morning clouds gave way to sunny skies.

Racing commenced at race 74 with first warning was shortly after 9:00 AM. The remainder of round 2 was completed resulting in Severn leading in first place, Norfolk Academy and Christian Brothers Academy tied for second place, and Spaulding and Hampton Roads Academy (HRA) tied for fourth place.

A sail-off to break the tie between Spaulding and HRA resulted in HRA taking fourth place in seeding for the final 4.

The final four round completed the regatta with a total of 97 races, resulting in Severn School finishing in first place with 19 wins and 2 losses, Norfolk Academy taking second with 16 wins and 5 losses, and Christian Brothers following in third place with 15 wins and 6 losses. Severn and Norfolk Academy have earned berths at the Baker National Team Race Championship. Christian Brothers and Hampton Roads Academy have earned berths at the National Invitational Team Race Championship. Congratulations are in order for four all of these top teams.

Of course the regatta would not have happened without a full complement of almost 30 volunteers. The start boat set the fast pace and kept the races flowing. Mark boats worked tirelessly with start and finish adjusting the course for sometimes seemingly constant shifts. Finish crew took care of scoring. Shore support fed volunteers, welcomed guests and kept the grounds tidy, while breakdown and rotations handled repairs inspected the boats for damage after collisions, and kept the sailors moving through the rotation. And the umpires, essential players in the game, kept the racing fair. Our greatest thanks to all, especially PRO Sam Patterson who came from Rhode Island to run a fast paced team race regatta, and CHUMP Alex Jacob who frequently gives up his time to support high school sailing.

A brief shoutout to the Patterson family is in order. Joan was regatta chair, Sam served as PRO, Anna umpired, and Zig handled marks 1 & 2.