Five Hobart sailors were recently honored by the
Statesmen Athletic Association at the annual Block H Awards Banquet. Junior
David Thompson and sophomores
Austen Anderson and
Sam Blouin shared top honors, taking home the Hobart College Sailing Award.
Senior
Ned Turney and sophomore
Chris Klevan were also recognized. Turney received the Class of 1994 Award, while Klevan accepted the Michele Torrisi ’96 Memorial Award. The Class of 1994 Award is presented for extraordinary commitment to the welfare of the sailing team, through the donation of time and effort beyond practice, while not apparent in mere racing performance, ensuring the current and future success of the team. The Torrisi Award is given to the crew member whose selfless devotion, positive attitude, and love of sailing inspires others to achieve his/her best.
Head Coach
Scott Iklé ’84 told the Block H crowd that he couldn’t pick just one sailor as the most valuable or the most improved, so he combined the two awards into the Hobart College Sailing Award in honor of the dedication, leadership, and improvement Thompson, Anderson, and Blouin displayed this season.
Thompson, who earned the Class of 1994 Award last year and the Rookie Award for Sailing in 2008, was a skipper for HWS for four races in the A Division in the 2010 Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association (ICSA) Coed Dinghy National Championship. During the regular season, he logged first place finishes in the Thompson Trophy (B Division), the MAISA Top 9 Regatta (A), and the New York Maritime Open (B).
Anderson played a key role in HWS’s qualifying run for the ICSA Coed Dinghy Championship. He finished third in the B Division of the America Trophy, helping the Colleges secure a berth in the ICSA Western Semifinal, where he placed third in the B Division. That effort helped HWS gain a spot in the national championship, where Anderson took sixth in the B Division. During the regular season, he posted four B Division victories (Admiral’s Cup, HWS Fall Intersectional, North Fall Regatta, & Cornell Fall Open), three of which led to HWS regatta victories (Admiral’s, North, & Cornell).
Blouin sailed in the A Division of the ICSA Coed Dinghy National Championship and the ICSA Western Semifinal. He finished second in the A Division of the Admiral’s Cup and placed third in the B Division at the War Memorial. Blouin won the A Division of the Kings Point Fall Open and the North Fall regattas. He also took second place in the singlehanded Laser North No. 1 regatta, earning a berth in the Carl Van Duyne Trophy.
Turney sailed to a second place finish in the A Division, helping HWS win the New York Maritime Open. He also helped the Colleges to second place in the MAISA Team Race Challenge and fourth place in the John Jackson Team Race regatta. Turney skippered HWS’s B Division entry at the Moody and Capt. Hurst regattas and registered a sixth place effort at the Laser North No. 1 regatta.
Klevan crewed HWS’s A Division entry at the America Trophy, ICSA Western Semifinal, and ICSA Coed Dinghy National Championship. He won the B Division of the Admiral’s Cup. Klevan was HWS’s A Division crew at the Truxtun Umsted and HWS Fall Intersectional regattas and emerged victorious in the B Division at the North Fall regatta.
The Hobart and William Smith sailing team was 12th in the nation in the latest
Sailing World College rankings. HWS finished 11th in the ICSA Coed Dinghy National Championship, following a sixth place showing in the ICSA Western Semifinal.