The Dartmouth sailing team continued its upward surge in the national standings by posting strong results last weekend at three different regattas. The team finished third overall in both the Smith Trophy and Hewitt Trophy regattas, while placing 13th at the Danmark Trophy.
Bernie Roesler '12 and Michelle Hernandez '12 finished in third place in the A division at the Smith Trophy, which took place at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Rachel Moncton '12 and Chris Price '14 captured fourth place in the B division.
Yale University had the winning team at the Smith Trophy, while Roger Williams University finished second.
"We sailed really well this past weekend at MIT," Roesler said. "We kept up really well with Yale and Roger Williams all weekend. We were going back and forth with them, and although we didn't win, we're pleased with our finish."
At the competitive Danmark Trophy on Saturday which took place at the United States Coast Guard Academy in New London, Conn. the team finished 13th out of a field of 20 teams.
"We held our own out on the water," Sam Williams '12 said. "We're finishing better than we have in the past few years, which says a lot about this team since we are a lot younger this year."
Williams sailed with Matt Habig '13, and the duo finished ninth in the A division. Ed Jude Glackin '11, John Renehan '13 and Carissa Crawford '14 came in 13th place in the B division.
St. Mary's College of Maryland won the Danmark Trophy, while Roger Williams and Yale each earned another top-three finish for the weekend, coming in second and third place, respectively.
"The Danmark was the hardest regatta of the fall so far," Williams said. "The competition included a lot of the top sailors in the country, but left the event knowing we have the potential to do even better."
At the Hewitt Trophy at Bowdoin College, Taylor McDonald '12 and Stephanie Hernandez '13 wrapped up a fifth place finish in the A division, while Gwen Tetirick '13 and Sarah Hylton '13 came in third place in the B division. Both teams combined for a third place finish overall.
Bowdoin, the host team, used its home-water advantage to win the regatta, while Tufts University finished second overall.
The team will look to improve on their national rankings when they sail at the Casco Bay Open at Bowdoin on Oct. 9, and at the Moody Trophy hosted by the University of Rhode Island on Oct. 9.
The Big Green co-ed team ranks 12th nationally, while the women's team hold the 13th place spot. Despite these impressive early results, the team believes it can do even better.
"The whole team knows we can do better and we're excited to put the work in to get to the next level," Williams said.
The team will continue facing higher ranked opponents throughout the season. By beating teams such as Yale No. 3 for women and No. 6 for co-eds and Roger Williams No. 8 for co-eds two teams that sailed to better finishes than those of the Big Green's, the team will be able to solidify its national and conference status.
"We know our strengths and weaknesses and are out there every day trying to improve and unify this squad," co-captain Peter Hughes '11 said. "It's all about putting in the effort and continuing to work hard. If we do that, our efforts will pay off during the weekends."
Glackin agreed with Hughes, adding that practice and hard work will help the young team to continue its successful run.
"It's pretty much known to all of us that we're a young team compared to others in our conference," Glackin said. "But everyone is willing to grow together as a team, while also winning as many regattas as we can. We're going to go out there every weekend ready to give every single ounce of what we've got."
