ST. PETERSBURG – The Eckerd sailing team saw its stay at the Open Fleet National Championship come to an end on Wednesday, finishing the semifinal round in 16th place out of 18 teams in the eastern division.
The duos of
Jordan Vieira/
Tia Soultanakis and
Paul Rodrigues Jr./
Avery Guck headed out for the Tritons. Day one featured hot, humid with weather with early cumulus clouds foreshadowing the afternoon's storms. Racing began promptly at 9:30 a.m. for Eastern Division in FJs. Winds started at 10-11 knots from the ESE and remained consistent until fading mid-day to the 4 knot minimum before the thunderstorms came in. Four division A races were completed, but only two division B.
Eckerd sat in 16th place after day one, posting their best finish of seventh place in the A division in race two.
On day two, it began with more sunny skies and east winds at 9-10 knots. Racing commenced promptly at 8:30 a.m., earlier than usual due to less races on day one. By mid-day the wind dropped below the 4 knot minimum and sailors returned to shore and waited for the sea breeze to fill. Racing resumed in a SW breeze of 7-9 knots with the final race started just before the time limit. A total of 28 races were sailed during the event, seven A and seven B races in both Eastern and Western divisions. All morning races were W4's and afternoon races were W5's, averaging 20-22 minutes in length.
The Tritons saw two top-five finishes on the final day, both coming in the B division. The final race of the regatta featured a second-place standing for Eckerd in the B.
After both teams, the team remained in 16th place.
