April 19, 2009
THROGS NECK, N.Y. -- The 18th ranked ODU sailing Monarchs are in sixth place after the first day of the MAISA Spring Championship, the America Trophy. With 114 points after eight completed races, ODU is in position to clinch a spot at the ICSA National Semi-finals. Junior Kyle Rogachenko and senior Mike Brown were skippers for all eight races yesterday.
Rogachenko sailed with senior Jaci Finney and junior Wilson Stout to a sixth place finish in A division. Rogachenko and Finney sailed to one victory and a third place finish in four races, while Stout and the junior skipper also added a third. Each tandem scored three top ten efforts and the boat finished with 56 points. ODU is just 17 points behind the Hobart & William Smith team for third place in the division.
In B division, Brown sailed with senior crew Alissa Ayres and junior Michael Komar. Ayres and Brown had four top tens in six races and Komar stepped in adding one in a pair of races. Brown led the B division boat to a 58-point effort and seventh place, just 24 back of a top three finish.
Eight races were completed on the first day, giving way for the possibility of as many as ten on the second day. ODU has won the America Trophy five times in school history, with the last coming in 2002.