ICSA Embraces 'Brackets' format

by Jan Harley on 16 Apr 2008 Sports fans, for whom filling in their college basketball 'brackets' is a seasonal ritual, will soon get another chance to make the right picks as college sailing moves to a bracket system to determine who will play in the ICSA/Gill Coed National Championship scheduled for June 2-4, 2008, in Newport, R.I.

The Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association (ICSA) has adopted the format in part to accommodate the growing numbers of highly competitive teams. Where colleges once qualified for the coed national championship through conference eliminations, there is now a two-step process that will expand and strengthen the competitive field.

For the 200 ICSA-member sailing teams in North America, the first hurdle is to perform well enough in your conference (there are seven) to earn a spot in one of two semifinal events: the ICSA National Championship Eastern Semifinals will be held at Hobart and William Smith Colleges (Geneva, N.Y.) in 420s, while simultaneously the ICSA National Championship Western Semifinals will be hosted by the University of Southern California (Los Angeles, Calif.) in FJs. Set to take place the weekend of April 26-27, the two events will have a collective 36 teams competing (18 at each event) with the top nine finishers from each semifinal championship advancing to the grand finale - the ICSA/Gill Coed National Championship. The new system will also eliminate the two controversial At-Large berths.

'One great thing about the new format was that double the teams made it into the tournament,' said ICSA President Mitch Brindley. 'The bracket assignments were made to ensure each semifinal was as equal as possible, and that virtually guarantees that those competing in the coed national championship are the most competitive teams in North America.'

Qualifying for the two remaining events that fall under the ICSA National Championship umbrella: the ICSA Women's National Championship (May 26-28), and the ICSA/APS Team Race National Championship (May 30-June 1), will
continue to be through conference eliminations with 18 teams competing in the women's event, and 14 in the team racing event. New York Yacht Club's Harbour Court will be the headquarters for all three championships, and competitors will utilize the Museum of Yachting's boat basin at Fort Adams State Park for their boat rotations. Racing will take place south of Rose Island and west of Goat Island which will offer spectators several vantage points from which to view the action. New York Yacht Club will host the championships - all three to be sailed in 420s - along with Brown University (Providence, R.I.) and Salve Regina University (Newport, R.I.).

ICSA is the governing authority for sailing competition at colleges and universities throughout the United States and in some parts of Canada. To learn more please visit: www.collegesailing.org
. ICSA is sponsored by Gill, Annapolis
Performance Sailing, Marlow Ropes, Quantum Sails and Laser Performance:
www.gillna.com , www.apsltd.com
, www.bainbridgeint.com
, www.quantumsails.com
and www.laserperformance.com/main/

List of Teams Sailing in the Semifinals:

April 26-27, 2008 - ICSA National Championship Western Semifinals
Hosted by the University of Southern California (Los Angeles, Calif.) in
FJs.
Brown University (Providence, R.I.)
College of Charleston (Charleston, S.C.)
Georgetown University (Washington, D.C.)
Old Dominion University (Norfolk, Va.)
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Cambridge, Mass.)
Northwestern University (Evanston, Ill.)
Roger Williams University (Bristol, R.I.)
SUNY Maritime College (Throggs Neck, N.Y.)
Texas A & M Galveston (Galveston, Texas)
U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (Kings Point, N.Y.)
University of Hawaii (Honolulu, Hawaii)
University of Minnesota (Minneapolis, Minn.)
University of Notre Dame (South Bend, Ind.)
University of South Florida (St. Petersburg, Fla.)
University of Southern California (Los Angeles, Calif.)
University of Texas (Austin, Texas)
Western Washington University (Bellingham, Wash.)
Yale University (New Haven, Conn.)

April 26-27, 2008 - ICSA National Championship Eastern Semifinals
Hosted by Hobart and William Smith Colleges (Geneva, N.Y.) in 420s.
Boston College (Chestnut Hill, Mass.)
Connecticut College (New London, Conn.)
Eckerd College (St. Petersburg, Fla.)
Florida Atlantic University (Boca Raton, Fla.)
Harvard University (Cambridge, Mass.)
Hobart & William Smith Colleges (Geneva, N.Y.)
St. Mary's College (St. Mary's City, Md.)
Stanford University (Palo Alto, Calif.)
Tufts University (Medford, Mass.)
University of California (San Diego, Calif.)
University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, Mich.)
University of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, Penn.)
University of South Alabama (Mobile, Ala.)
University of South Florida (St. Petersburg, Fla.)
University of Vermont (Burlington, Vt.)
University of Washington (Seattle, Wash.)
University of Wisconsin (Madison, Wis.)
Washington College (Chestertown, Md.)

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