Regatta Report: Laserperformance Team Race Nationals

• Sailors

  • Mason Wolters ('18)
  • Mike Gapuz ('18)
  • Colton Gerber ('18)
  • Sarah Silvestri ('19)
  • August Sturm ('20)
  • Sofia Gambini ('18)

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Summary

We sent a team of Wolverines to compete at the Laserperformance Team Race Nationals hosted by Old Dominion University. Sailing was tough, as we were competing against the best Team Race teams in the nation. 

On Saturday the Race Committee got off 96 races in 8-16 knots from the Southwest. Sunday we finished the remaining races of the first round robin. Conditions were similar with consistent 10-16 knots.

Overall our Team was able to stay competitive with the other teams. We came off strong with a win against USF to close out our time in the event.

Congratulations to Colton Gerber for sailing his final dinghy regatta this past weekend. We are looking forward to Coeds in the next few days!

Thanks to ODU for hosting the event, and to Tom Etheridge for hosting our sailors.

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Regatta Report: Sperry Women's Nationals

Sailors

S. Youtt ('21), S. Silvestri ('19), A. Marozza ('21), S. Gambini ('18)

• A Fleet:
  • Skipper- Allison Marozza ('21)
  • Crew- Sofia Gambini ('18)
• B Fleet:
  • Skipper- Sarah Youtt ('21)
  • Crew- Sarah Silvestri ('19)

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Summary

S. Gambini ('18) & A. Marozza ('21)

From May 22-23, four sailors from the Michigan women's team went to Old Dominion University to compete in Sperry Women's Nationals. The races were located on the Elizabeth River at the mouth of the Lafayette River. 

On the 22nd, the wind began as a 4-6 knot southerly, and the wind built throughout the day with a maximum of 10 knots. Our sailors worked to gain experience on an incredibly competitive starting line and sailed in a fleet with the best female collegiate sailors in the country. 

S. Youtt ('21) & S. Silvestri ('19)

Applying the knowledge that they gained on the previous day, the Wolverines entered day 2 of semi-finals with more confidence. The wind was fairly consistent at about 15 knots out of the south in the morning. Throughout the rest of the day, the wind swung right and died. Around 2:00, races were delayed due to a lack of wind. After about a half hour, the wind built back to about 5 knots, and races continued. 

Overall, this event was an excellent way for our young women's team to gain experience in a very competitive regatta. This year was the first time in five years that we sent a women's team to nationals, and our goal is to continue qualifying for and attending the event. 

Thank you to Old Dominion University for running a great event and to Tom Etheridge for hosting and coaching us. Go Blue!

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Written by S. Youtt ('21)

Senior Spotlight - Class of 2018

This spring we have six wonderful seniors graduating and pursuing careers with a variety of degrees. We would like to take a moment to highlight their accomplishments, share memories, and announce their future plans.

We are so grateful to all that these six individuals have given to the team. We wish them the best of luck after graduation and look forward to seeing them around Ann Arbor in the future.

Left to Right: M. Gapuz, L. Tobin, C. Gerber, S. Thompson, M. Wolters - Not Pictured: Charlie Rogers

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Mike Gapuz

Microbiology

Mike graduated with a degree in Microbiology. He joined the team his freshman year and has been an invaluable member ever since. Not only is he a crew, Mike was on the Executive Board last year, as the social chair, and this year he is a member of the communications committee.

In his four years on the team, Mike has accomplished a lot. But the one moment that he is most proud of is his first-place finish in the 2017 Match Race Quals. In his words “It was an awesome feeling to come back a year after getting third place and win the whole thing. Match racing is already super fun on its own, and to qualify for nationals during my last year on the team was a great feeling". 

Sailing is a demanding sport, and Mike understands that it is important to learn how “to be comfortable with the uncomfortable”. There are many times when the conditions are rough or nothing is going right. But his one piece of advice is to “be tenacious and don’t be afraid to mess up”.

Even though Mike is leaving the team in a few short weeks, he won't be going too far! After receiving a degree in Microbiology, Mike will start his Masters in Public Health here at the University of Michigan. So even though he will not be on the team anymore, his guidance and love for the team won’t be too far out of reach. The four years he has devoted to the team have been special, and the team certainly will not be the same without him!

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Colton Gerber

Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering

Colton Gerber graduated with a degree in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering. He has been a part of the team since his sophomore year, and he has competed in a plethora of dinghy and keelboat regattas across the country over the past four years.

Colton has been an admirable leader on the team, as he is always willing to give advice to other sailors and use his expertise to better the team. He is constantly improving upon his own skills and helping our team to compete at the highest level. This year, Colton was on the match race team that won MCSA Match Race Quals and ultimately competed at nationals. Last spring, Colton was a skipper at Coed Nationals at the College of Charleston.

Throughout his college sailing career, Colton has been able to appreciate his losses as learning experiences that make winning more fulfilling. He states that his two most memorable regattas were Spring 2017 MCSA Team Race Quals, at which Michigan placed third, thus not qualifying for nationals, and Fall 2018 Match Race Quals, at which Michigan placed first. “The bitterness of coming so close to qualifying at Team Race Quals elevated the elation of winning Match Race Quals.”

To future members, Colton emphasizes the importance of teamwork and enjoying the sport. He says to, “sail as much as possible, but never sacrifice having fun while doing so.”

Next year, Colton will be serving in the United States Navy as a Naval Aviator. We will truly miss Colton’s presence on the team, and we are so proud of all of his accomplishments.

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charlie Rogers

Computer Science

Charlie Rogers graduated with a degree in Computer Science. He started on the team his freshman year, and has been an integral member to the team ever since. After his first season on the team, Charlie was elected the team Rec Sports Chair. The next year, he was the team Treasurer. In both positions, he worked incredibly hard to maintain our team’s success and organization. Aside from his executive board responsibilities, Charlie competed in many dinghy and keelboat regattas.

Charlie recalls his experience at the 2016 Sloop Championship at DYC to be one of his all time favorite regattas. “Even though the Flying Scotts weren’t the most thrilling boat to sail, it was my first time learning how to sail with a spinnaker, so it ended up being pretty fun. Grant helped skipper us to a bullet almost every race, tying for the all-time best score for the event.”

To new members, Charlie advises to “... enjoy your last year on the team… I'll miss getting to travel to regattas on the weekends and competing against sailors from other schools.”

This summer, Charlie will be finishing his last few degree requirements at a summer study abroad program in Shanghai, China. Then, he will be working as a Software Engineer at Pure Storage in Mountain View, California. Charlie has been such an active member of the team for the past three years, and the team congratulates him for his success!

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Sydney Thompson

Economics

Sydney graduated with a degree in Economics with a minor in Food and the Environment. After joining the team her freshman year, she has been an active member, competing in a variety of regattas and serving on the executive board as the Media Chair. 

She is a very talented and experienced crew, and she has helped our team to qualify for and compete at Coed Nationals. She continues to be a role model for all crews on our team, and she continually tries to improve her own skills. 

Sydney has played an enormous role in welcoming new members, and she has served as a role model for all sailors on the team. She advises the team to “... stay involved and sign up for regattas out of [their] comfort zone. No matter how much [their] skills have grown, there is always room for improvement.”

After graduating, Sydney is planning to travel to South Asia in May and spend the summer in Ann Arbor. Then, in September, she will move to Madison, Wisconsin to work for Epic in QA. We are so proud of all of Sydney’s accomplishments and will miss her vibrant personality on the team next year.

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Lane Tobin

Industrial & Operations Engineering

Lane graduated with a degree in Industrial & Operations Engineering. Lane has been on the team since her freshman year, where she became active quickly after running for Short-Term Fundraising Chair. Her role in team fundraising is immeasurable. She also served two terms as Co-Captain alongside Mason Wolters. 

Lane has been an valuable asset to the team. She has played a huge role in both Coed and Women's Events, qualifying for Women's Nationals in the A Division the past two years. Additionally, Lane is one of our top Keelboat Skippers, having competed in Kennedy Cup the past three fall seasons. 

Some of Lane's highlights on the team include developing friendships with Syndey her freshman year, and Amy, who she has sailed with the past three years - a boat they have named 'public indecency'. She recollects times of bonding with fellow seniors throughout her time on the team, especially her Co-Captain, Mason. With respect to sailing, she treasures the sailing at Coed and Team Race Nationals, and winning Match Race Quals twice. Additionally, a race at Kennedy Cup where she horizoned the fleet in the final race, and spinning out twice during Women's Quals but catching two lifts to win the race are some of her favorite memories.

Lane's legacy will not be soon forgotten, as she has been an incredible role-model for all team members who have sailed under her rein. However, she advises getting involved and signing up for regattas, as the team has given her some of her closest friends as well as the opportunity to travel and develop her sailing skills.

Lane will be moving to Seattle for work, and will hopefully be buying a boat! We wish Lane the best and want to thank her for everything she has done for the team. Words cannot express how grateful we are for her contribution to our program - both on and off the water!

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Mason Wolters

Computer Science

Mason graduated with a degree in Computer Science. Mason has been on the team since the very beginning of his freshman year! He served two terms as Co-Captain alongside Lane Tobin and has been a valuable member of the team.

Mason held the status of one of our top dinghy skippers. Alongside his crew, Mike, Mason was consistently competing at most East Coast regattas, and got very good at managing to "get homework done during a ten hour car ride". One of his more memorable moments on the team was winning a race last year in the A Division of Coed Nationals - the race would go on to have been thrown out, as the B fleet could not complete their set in the time alloted. Nevertheless, Mason fondly recollects horizoning the fleet after taking a gate that no other boats sought out to take. Mason also represented our team at the ICSA Men's Singlehanded Nationals in the Fall of 2017

Mason's sailing performance is not limited to FJs and 420s. He played a huge role in Michigan's First Place finish at MCSA Match Race Championship as a skipper, and has also competed in his fair share of Keelboat Events.

Mason advises to current and future team members to "enjoy your time on the team because it goes faster than you think". He will miss traveling every weekend with his friends to sail and compete. 

Mason's next step is moving to LA to work at a startup.

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Written by S. Youtt ('21), M. Carroll ('21), and S. Gambini ('18)

Regatta Report: NU Spring

Back: Gerber, Ephraim, Ellsworth, Ryan, Haag, Goulet, Glover, Gapuz. Front: Gambini, Agrawal, Carroll, Wisotzkey

SAILORS

• Wolverines 1 (1st)
  • A: Colton Gerber ('18) - Anna Wisotzkey ('20)
  • B: Grant Glover ('19) - Mike Gapuz ('18)
• Wolverines 2 (3rd)
  • A: Austin Haag ('20) - Sofia Gambini ('18)
  • B: Max Ellsworth ('21) - Ambi Agrawal ('20)
• Wolverines 3 (5th)
  • Connor Goulet ('21) - Maggie Carroll ('21)
  • Pat Ryan ('19) - Sam Ephraim ('21)

Summary

We sent 12 sailors over to Northwestern for a weekend of warm weather and stress-free sailing (because we are out of school!). Saturday started off warm with light winds. 8 races were sailed in each fleet as sailors soaked up the sun at the first warm regatta of the season.

Sunday started off much windier and a bit colder but 4 races were sailed in each fleet to bring an end to the regatta.

Overall, Wolverines 1 finished in 1st, Wolverines 2 finished in 3rd behind Minnesota by 1 point, and Wolverines 3 finished 5th. The 1st place finish was carried by the B fleet who scored a perfect 12 points total for 12 races. The A fleet teams finished 1st, 2nd, and 3rd in the A Division respectively.

A great regatta weather-wise and result-wise. Great work everone and thank you to Northwestern for hosting!

Regatta Report: MCSA Coed Championship

Sailors

• A Fleet:
  • August Sturm ('20)
  • Anna Wisotzkey ('19)
• B Fleet:
  • Austin Haag ('20)
  • Sofia Gambini ('18)
• Alternates
  • Connor Goulet ('21)
  • Jake Orhan ('21)

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Summary

We sent 6 sailors back to Madison this weekend to compete in the MCSA Coed Championship. Saturday brought decent wind in the morning but lighter conditions in the afternoon. It was cold so drysuits were mandatory. Waves were present in Lake Mendota which made for unfamiliar conditions. Overall, 16 races were sailed Saturday, and our wolverines sat in 1st at the end of day one.

Going into day two, our sailors were looking to hold on to the top spot, as it would promise them a berth to ICSA Coed Nationals. The wind was light and variable on the second day, making for more tough conditions for our crews. The team was able to pull out 2 races each and ended up taking first over Wisconsin by two points. Our A fleet got first in their division and our B fleet got second by one point. 

Overall, our team qualified for ICSA Coed Nationals with our 1st Place finish. Congrats to Wisconsin, Northwestern, Milwaukee, and Notre Dame for also qualifying.

Huge thanks to Wisconsin for hosting two great qualifying regattas two weekends in a row!

Go Blue!

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Written by S. Gambini ('18)

Regatta Report: MCSA Women's Clinic

Sailors

• Ambi Agrawal ('20) - Skipper
• Maggie Carroll ('21) - Crew
• Allison Marozza ('21) - Skipper
• Anna Wisotzkey ('19) - Crew
• Sarah Youtt ('21) - Skipper

 

 

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Summary

A. Wisotzkey ('19) & A. Marozza ('21)

Five of our female sailors traveled to Chicago this weekend to participate in the MCSA Women's Clinic at Columbia Yacht Club. The entire event had over forty-five female sailors from MCSA and MISSA. Coaches and sailors from across the Midwest traveled to Columbia Yacht Club to instruct the sailors. These coaches included Kate Klement, Melinda Lee, Hannah Noll, Leslie Poole, Libby Reeg, Meg Six, and Katie Tinder. 

A. Agrawal ('20)

Throughout the weekend, the sailors participated in a series of team-building exercises and sailed 420's on Lake Michigan. On Saturday, the conditions were very light, ranging from approximately 3 to 7 knots of wind. The clinic emphasized using bodyweight to steer and working on boat handling. Coaches video taped the sailors' roll tacks and mark roundings and critiqued them in the debrief. 

S. Youtt ('21) & M. Carroll ('21)

On Sunday, the breeze picked up significantly, and the wind built throughout the day from about 8 to 15 knots. The exercises on the water were focused around downwind maneuvers and races. Overall, the weekend was an excellent opportunity for our sailors to gain more experience on the water and to practice boat handling skills. 

Thank you so much to all coaches and Courtney Kingsley for organizing this event! Also, thank you to Hannah Lee Noll and Christian M. Wilson for the amazing pictures. 

Photo Credit: Christian M. Wilson

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Written by S. Youtt ('21)

Regatta Report: MCSA Team Race Championship

Sailors

Skippers:                                                 Crews:

Mason Wolters ('18)              Mike Gapuz ('18)

August Sturm ('20)             Sofia Gambini ('18)

Colton Gerber ('18)    Sydney Thompson ('18)

Alt Crew: Jake Orhan ('21)

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Summary

Michigan Sailing wins MCSA Team Race Championship!

We sent 7 sailors to the University of Wisconsin - Madison to compete in the MCSA Team Race Qualifier Regatta. Saturday started out with glassy water on Lake Mendota, so the sailors were postponed for until around noon, when they finally hit the water. The Wolverines went undefeated through the first day, where 3 races were completed of the first round-robin. With a win against Wisconsin, Milwaukee, and Minnesota under their belt, the team left Saturday ready for what Sunday had to bring - hopefully more wind.

Unfortunately, upon arrival to the lake sunday, there was no wind. The teams were eventually able to complete the round robin, and one full Top Four. Michigan's final record was 7 wins, 1 loss, taking home First Place overall.

Our first place finish has given us a berth to ICSA Team Race Nationals where we will represent the MCSA alongside Wisconsin.

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Pictures

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Written by S. Gambini ('18)

April's Sailor of the Month

Introducing our Sailor of the Month, Maggie!

Maggie is a freshman in the School of Engineering. She joined the team late in the fall, but that has not kept her from her already outstanding contribution to the Sailing Team.

Maggie is an up-and-coming crew. Over the course of the winter and spring break training, Maggie has taken it upon herself to learn as much as she can about sailing competitively. She pushes herself every practice and goes out of her way to ask questions and seek out feedback.

Maggie has also taken on a leadership role in her work with the team's social media platforms, and social event planning. Additionally, Maggie is always ready to step up and take on responsibilities, even if they aren't the most desirable - more recently at our home regattas.

Maggie's enthusiasm and drive are admired by all. Her positive attitude and desire to learn makes her a great role model for current and new team members. We look forward to seeing her continue to learn and perfect her crewing abilities and hopefully take on an official leadership position in the coming winter. Maggie, your hard work does not go unnoticed! Thank you!

Regatta Report: MCSA Women's Championship

Sailors

Left to Right: Sarah Y, Sarah S, Amy, Lane

A Fleet:

• Lane Tobin ('18) - Skipper
• Amy Baer ('19) - Crew

B Fleet:

• Sarah Youtt ('21) - Skipper
• Sarah Silvestri ('19) - Crew
• Alt: Sofia Gambini ('18) - Crew

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Summary

The Michigan Sailing Team hosted the MCSA Women's Championship Regatta for the second year in a row! 

Saturday started off with heavy winds and rain, and continued throughout the morning. Eventually the rain stopped, but wind picked up resulting in lots of capsizing and fast racing. We were able to complete the ten races in each division required for a complete event on Saturday, so racing on Sunday was canceled. 

Wisconsin took 1st place followed by Michigan in 2nd, Notre Dame in 3rd, and Minnesota in 4th. Congratulations to these four teams, as their finishes earned them a spot at the ICSA Women's Nationals this May!

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Pictures

Wisconsin - 1st Place

Notre Dame - 3rd Place

Minnesota - 4th Place

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Written by S. Gambini ('18)

Banquet 2018 - A Year in Review

The team spent Thursday evening enjoying each other's company at Jolly Pumpkin in Ann Arbor, Michigan! We were able to reflect on the past year's accomplishments, hear from our seniors, and award our sailors with our annual team awards! We would love to share the highlights with you!

Awards

We recognized five of our sailors for their work and development throughout the last year! The following were the awards and their recipients for 2018:

Left to Right: Axel, Anna, Sarah, Mason, Mike

• Mason Wolters ('18) - Most Valuable Skipper
• Mike Gapuz ('18) - Most Valuable Crew
• Axel Steinmetz ('20) - Sportsmanship Award
• Sarah Youtt ('21) - Most Valuable First-Year Team Member
• Anna Wisotzkey ('19) - Most Improved

Seniors

We have six team members who will be graduating at the end of the semester. Their contribution to the team is invaluable, and we want to wish them the best of luck as they move forward in their post-graduate careers. You can read more about each of them here.

• Charlie Rogers - Computer Science
• Colton Gerber - Naval Architecture and Engineering
• Lane Tobin - Industrial & Operations Engineering
• Mason Wolters - Computer Science
• Mike Gapuz - Microbiology
• Sydney Thompson - Economics

coaches

Left to Right: Austin, Max, Brian, Amy

We took the opportunity to express our appreciation for our two coaches, Brian and Max. Their dedication to our team this past year has allowed us to develop and train at a higher level. We look forward to continue working with them in the coming year!