Summer lives on in the hearts of one group of Dartmouth athletes. The Big Green sailing team refuses to let fall set in and will not be bothered by the typical, chilly Hanover weather as they prepare for a long fall season filled with numerous weekend regattas.
Already this season, both the men and women sailors have performed particularly well, proving to New England and other eastern teams that Dartmouth sailing is a top-notch program that will be difficult to defeat.
In fact, the women sailors have already earned a ranking of two in the nation, a position that Coach Brian Doyle feels is more than fair.
"We have a lot of female talent in our upperclassmen," Doyle said. "We're excited about the team. It's a great way to start the season."
Women's Captain Heather Melanson '97 will lead the pack of women sailors. She will be joined by Commodore Amanda Ruscitto '97 and seniors Carrie Gilbert and Summer Craig. Last year's rookies, Alice Nelson '99 and Posy Evans '99 are also looking to step up their performances this season.
For the varsity squad, which in sailing is a combination of men and women, there still is some room for improvement. Tentatively, the team is ranked around 22nd in the nation, but with some strong young talent, the Big Green are looking to break into the top 20.
"We have a lot of incoming freshmen, and this year there happens to be more male than female," Doyle said. "That's good because we already had such strong women."
Dan Herlihy '00 and Marcus Coe '00 are among the top freshmen to watch this season. They will take the lead from senior Captain Jeff Shoreman and Vice Commodore Jimmy Franzone '97.
Unlike in most sports where the team travels as a unit, in sailing, individual pairs are sent to different regattas. Most boats are two-person boats with one skipper and one crew.
In the fall, the main goal at each regatta is qualifying the team for the Atlantic Coast Championships in November. There are three events at the Championships which feature the top sailing teams along the Atlantic coast -- women, varsity and freshmen.
"Our goal is ultimately to qualify our team for all three events," Doyle said. "And once we get there, we would like to win the whole thing."
Out of New England, six teams will qualify and they will compete against six Mid-Atlantic teams and four South-Atlantic teams.
"Generally these three regions are the strongest sailing regions in the nation," Doyle said. "So the Championships are a good indicator of the National Championships held every spring."
While the regattas for qualifying for the Atlantic Championships begin this weekend, the Dartmouth sailors have already been tacking in valuable time on the water in several different regattas including two that the Big Green themselves hosted.
Last weekend, Dartmouth sponsored the first ever Mrs. Hurst Bowl. The regatta is named after Chris Hurst, wife of former sailing coach Captain Hurst and an avid Dartmouth sailing supporter. The event featured five women's teams. After trailing by a point at the end of the first day of competition, the Dartmouth women rallied during the last three races on Sunday to win the regatta.
Gilbert, Nelson, Ruscitto and Evans were the top Dartmouth women at the two-day regatta.
"I thought everything went really well," Ruscitto said. "It was nice to sail so well at home."
While only five teams came to the regatta this season, next year, the event will draw a much larger crowd as it will become an official women's intersectional regatta. Intersectional regattas attract teams from throughout the country.
Two weekends ago, the Dartmouth's varsity squad hosted the annual Captain Hurst Bowl. This regatta began during Captain Hurst's final years of coaching at Dartmouth. The varsity squad struggled slightly at the event but ended in the top ten.
With still just under two months remaining in their fall season, the Big Green are looking to continue their winning ways.
"We are going to practice hard for the next three to four weeks," Doyle said. "I think by then the freshmen will come on strong and everything will be set for the upperclassmen. We have a good group of seniors with strong leadership. They should lead the team to success."
