The varsity sailing team put on a show for the home crowd, winning the New England fleet racing championships on Lake Wononscopomuc on April 14.

The Bearcats edged out St. George’s, 61-64, after a stellar afternoon of racing that saw them post a stretch of 11 consecutive top-four finishes in a loaded field of 15 schools.

The duos of Chris Lukens ’19 & Gwyneth Howell ’20 and Oliver Hurwitz ’21 & Elizabeth Koobatian ’19 represented Hotchkiss at the event, which consists of two separate divisions, with one boat from each school sailing in each race. The total team score for the event is the sum of the places of their boats in all the races, with the low overall score winning.

The event itself got off to a slow start, with difficult wind conditions preventing the field from getting in more than four races before lunchtime. After an hour lunch break, however, the wind improved and ultimately each division was able to complete eight races total.

Lukens and Howell put together a run for the ages to help the Bearcats secure the victory. After starting with an eighth-place finish in the first race, the duo finished with a nearly flawless set of seven races: first, third, first, first, first, second, and third.

Hurwitz and Koobatian also enjoyed great success, finishing fourth or better in six of the eight races.

With the win, Hotchkiss now qualifies to compete in the national fleet racing championships, held in Seattle, WA from May 11-12.