HAMPTON, Va. – The Eckerd College coed sailing program had its postseason hopes for nationals come to a close over the weekend at the ICSA Eastern Semifinals hosted by Old Dominion University.
The Tritons initially qualified for semifinals at the SAISA District Championships with a third-place effort in St. Pete earlier this month and completed their final two-day regatta showing steady improvement as the event wore on.
A total of nine qualifiers in Virginia earned a spot at nationals that Eckerd will host later in May. Eckerd moved up the leaderboard from 14th on Saturday to settle for 11th in the field of 17 at the conclusion.
“We finished well on the back end of the group that didn't qualify,” reflected EC first-year head coach
Kevin Reali. “We made adjustments on Sunday that really helped. We're disappointed that we can't go to nationals, but we finished with a group that we should to be competitive with.”
The Tritons' coed unit officially put their first year under the Eckerd athletics department in the books with the women's program still slated to compete in their home waters on May 21-22.
Eckerd will co-host coed nationals, women's semifinals and nationals and team racing nationals, in Boca Ciega Bay.
Under the guidance of Reali and assistant coach
Zack Marks, the Tritons made strides with them at the helm and the future prospects are certainly bright.
Next year, Reali and Marks will welcome their first recruiting class and a handful of walk-ons with Eckerd poised to move to the next level in collegiate sailing.
“We can hit the ground running in the fall and use the routine that we've built,” added Reali. “We don't have to learn how to practice next year and that will allow us to be further along in the spring. Our practice routine has been very good and we've been working on new skills.”
The women, ranked 10th nationally, will continue to practice in preparation for semifinals in St. Petersburg. Reali stressed the component of speed with four days of practice remaining on the schedule until the regatta.
