THROGS NECK, NY - Showing that their teamwork is on par with the best of the country, Maritime finished third on Sunday April 12th at the MAISA Team Racing Championship hosted by Navy, securing a berth to the National Championship hosted by the University of California in May.

 

The Privateers got off to a quick start with wins against Navy, Hobart, ODU, Washington College and King's Point, running away to a 5-0 record before falling to #1 Georgetown and #3 St. Mary's.  With winds building to over 15 knots, Maritime put in heavy crews and continued their strong performance, ending Saturday with a record of eight wins and two losses.

 

Four races were all that separated Maritime from a berth to the Championship Round, but the Privateers stumbled early Sunday with a loss to Navy.

Regaining their composure, they rebounded in a victory over King's Point in their second race, ending the second round robin with an 11-5 record overall, one win ahead of Navy for third place the final berth to the National Championship.

 

Knowing that they controlled their own destiny, Maritime tallied close wins against eventual champions Georgetown and St. Mary's, making their final race against Navy inconsequential and guaranteeing them a trip to San Francisco.

 

The Maritime Team of Todd Hawkins (Ocean Gate, NJ/Monsignor Donovan), Dani Gamache, Morley Flynn (Martvillo, NY/Red Creek), Will Gallagher, Dan Hesse (Bohemia, NY/Connetquot), Matthew Brink (Babylon, NY/Babylon) and Nicki Kelly (Buffalo, N.Y./Nichols) will travel to the National Championship on May 27-29.  The team also looks to qualify for the fleet racing Nationals this coming weekend at the America Trophy, which the Privateers host.