The Rollins Tars delivered an impressive showing at the SAISA Fall Championships in Charleston, South Carolina, with the women’s team earning a runner-up finish and the open squad posting competitive results across the weekend. Hosted by the College of Charleston, the conference championship regattas featured 420s and FJs in a two-division scoring format.
The women’s championship took place Friday and Saturday, with Rollins finishing second behind host College of Charleston on 53 points, split between 18 in A Division and 35 in B Division. The Tars kept consistent lineups throughout the event, with skipper Annie Samis and crew Jane McKenzie racing in A Division while skipper Adelaide Matzky and crew Mollie Wood represented the team in B Division.
Samis and McKenzie opened with a fourth-place finish before hitting their stride in impressive fashion. The pair finished inside the top two in eight of the remaining nine races, with their only other result being a third in race seven. They collected five race wins across the 10-race championship, including three consecutive victories in races eight, nine, and 10 to close out the event on a high.
Matzky and Wood were equally reliable, finishing inside the top five in nine of 10 races and recording five top-three results over the weekend. The duo’s standout moment came with back-to-back race wins in the second and third races.
Attention then shifted to the open championship, where Rollins finished with 169 points, including 74 in A Division and 95 in B Division. Caleb Kinnear served as skipper alongside crew Cameron Kinnear in A Division. The pair finished inside the top 10 in all 14 races, notching eight top-five results. The Kinnears earned three runner-up finishes, crossing the line second in races two, six, and nine.
In B Division, Alexander Goldsmith served as crew throughout the championship, sailing with both Jack Adderley and Samis as skipper. Adderley and Goldsmith teamed up for six races, finishing inside the top 10 in each and recording three top-five results, highlighted by a third-place finish in race 12.
Samis took the helm alongside Goldsmith for the remaining eight races, with the pair finishing inside the top nine in each. Their best result came in race three, where they crossed the line third to match the best B Division finish of the weekend for Rollins.
The championship brings the team portion of the fall schedule to a close for Rollins. Samis will return to the water November 7-8 for the ICSA Women’s Singlehanded National Championship, hosted by Fordham University at American Yacht Club in Rye, New York.
