AUSTIN, Texas – The Tulane sailing team finished second in it’s spring season opener, earning first place finishes in four of six races on the water in the SEISA Open.
“Today was all about shaking off some winter rust and getting familiar with a venue we will be returning to in late April for our Conference Women’s Championship,” head coach Charles Higgins said. “We had some terrific finishes in both divisions but a couple rough race results held us back from winning the whole regatta. I feel very confident that when we come back in three months, this early season preparation will have been worthwhile.”
The Green Wave finished first in both the first and second races of the day on Saturday before recording two additional first place and three second place finishes among 11 opponents in the regatta.
Tulane recorded 47 total points in six races on the day, standing ahead of 10 opponents while checking in behind the University of Texas, who won the competition with 28 points.
Sophomore skipper Katherine Byrnes and freshman crew Grace Siwicki teamed up to sail the first two Division A races, starting off strong with a fast win. Siwicki then took over the skipper role alongside senior crew Sophie Ricker to finish out the remaining four races.
The three totaled 31 points to stand in fourth place among the 12 Division A teams, remaining ahead of Texas A&M, University of North Texas, Texas A&M at Corpus Christi, Loyola, Central Oklahoma and TCU.
The Division B team, made up of sophomore skipper/crew Alanna Austin and junior crew Brinton Hoover, had a successful performance on the water – standing in second with just 16 points after six races. Ricker sailed in the first two races before handing over the reigns to Austin, with the squad finishing in the top three spots in all but one race.
The Green Wave will have three weeks off before hitting the water again, preparing to host the Nelson Roltsch Regatta on Feb. 16 and 17 on Lake Pontchartrain.
Article courtesy of Tulane Sports Information Department.
