ST. MARY’S CITY, Md. — The Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association (ICSA) announced the field selections for the 2025 College Sailing Open and Women’s Fleet Race National Championships, to be hosted by St. Mary’s College of Maryland (SMCM) from May 20-30, 2025. SMCM qualified as an at-large selection for both the Women’s Fleet Race (May 20-23) and Open Fleet Race (May 27-30), marking the fourth time the college will host the prestigious event, most recently in 2014.
Each championship features a 36-team fleet, with 12 automatic qualifiers determined by conference championships and the remaining berths filled by at-large selections chosen by national selection committees. SMCM secured at-large spots in both fleets, joining top programs like Stanford University, Yale University, and Harvard University. The Women’s Fleet Race field includes teams such as Georgetown University, Cornell University, and Tulane University, while the Open Fleet Race field features the U.S. Naval Academy, Boston College, and the University of Miami.
The selection process, overseen by committees of five voting members and one non-voting ICSA competition committee member, prioritizes competitive performance throughout the season. The Women’s Selection Committee includes Derek Deskey, Kelsey Wheeler, Miranda Bakos, John Pearce, and Gwynie Dunlevy, while the Open Selection Committee comprises Molly Vandemoer, Thomas Barrows, Nic Baird, Clay Johnson, and Rose Edwards. Committee members, who cannot be coaches, must disclose affiliations and ensure gender representation, with the women’s committee requiring three women and the open committee requiring two.
Automatic qualifiers for the Women’s Fleet Race were awarded to conference champions and runners-up from conferences including MAISA (Georgetown University, Cornell University), NEISA (Yale University, Brown University), and PCCSC (Stanford University, University of Hawaii). For the Open Fleet Race, qualifiers came from MAISA (Georgetown University, U.S. Naval Academy), NEISA (Harvard University, Boston College), and SAISA (College of Charleston, University of Miami). At-large selections were based on season-long performance in regional or cross-regional regattas, with no consideration for geographic diversity or prior years’ records.
SMCM, a powerhouse in collegiate sailing, has won 18 ICSA national titles, including five in team racing, three each in coed dinghy and women’s singlehanded, two each in women’s dinghy, men’s singlehanded, and sloop, and one Fowle Trophy for best all-around performance. The 2025 championships will be held on the St. Mary’s River, offering a challenging venue for the nation’s top collegiate sailors.
The Women’s Fleet Race, running May 20-23, will feature teams like MIT, Dartmouth College, and the University of South Florida, while the Open Fleet Race, from May 27-30, includes Roger Williams University, the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, and the University of Wisconsin. Both events are expected to draw significant attention to SMCM’s campus, showcasing its facilities and sailing program.
The ICSA’s selection process ensures a competitive field, with teams required to have competed in at least one regatta in the relevant discipline. The championships will highlight the skill and dedication of collegiate sailors, with SMCM poised to host a memorable event in its storied sailing history.
