The College of Charleston sailing team added to the program’s already storied history on Tuesday, June 8, 2021, securing the school’s ninth Leonard M. Fowle Trophy with a fifth-place finish at the Gil Coed National Championship. Winning the Fowle Trophy essentially means that the Cougars are the No. 1 overall best team in the U.S.

The Fowle Trophy is awarded to the college or university sailing team with the most points based on the composite results of the six national championship regattas sponsored by the Intercollegiate Sailing Association. This marks the Cougarsโ€™ third Fowle Trophy win in the last four years, and fifth in the last 10 years.

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โ€œIโ€™m so proud of our sailors and coaches for remaining focused on our goals throughout a very challenging year,โ€ Director of Sailing Kevin Jewett said. โ€œThe team pulled together an amazing set of championship performances including our first womenโ€™s national championship in 11 years. We want to give a special thank you to Sam Davis and the entire Sports Medicine department whose tireless efforts made this season possible.โ€

The Cougars placed fifth at the Gil Coed National Championship with a two-day total of 273 points to finish eight points behind fourth-place Georgetown. Charleston finished fifth in both A- and B-Divisions with Jack Brown skippering the Cougars to 141 points in A-Division alongside crews Noelle Owen and Anna Sherry. The trio accounted for six top-five finishes and wins in the third and ninth races to miss out on third place in the division by only two points.

Paris Henken skippered the first 17 races in B-Division alongside freshman crew Lucy Klempen; Hunter Skinner took control of the tiller for the final race with Klempen crewing. The trop totaled 132 points and finished in the top five in seven races including wins in races four and 12.