Written by Michael Douglas
Tuesday, October 1st, 2002  

TUFTS CAPTURES THIRD STRAIGHT HOOD TROPHY

MEDFORD - The Tufts University co-ed sailing team sent a message to their competition this past weekend (Sept. 15-16) by winning their third straight Hood Trophy on Upper Mystic Lake in Medford. The Jumbos, ranked third in the nation entering the regatta, finished first in a field of 18 that featured such Division I powers as Boston College, Dartmouth, and Coast Guard. Tufts tallied a combined 90 points, seven ahead of second-place Boston College's 97.

Senior skipper Pete Levesque (Falmouth ME/ Tabor Academy) and classmate crew Caroline Hall (Tiverton, RI/ Moses Brown) navigated the A Division boat, capturing five first-place finishes over the two-day, 10-race event. The duo also posted seven top-five finishes and totaled 38 points, 11 ahead of second-place Boston University (49).

Junior A.J. Crane (Warwick, RI/St. George's) skippered the B Division boat, while senior Rob Pascal (East Haddum, CT/The Williams School), sophomore Rory Giffen (Fresno, CA/Bullard), and junior Kristen Tysell (Richmond, CA/Cate) split the crew duties. Alongside Crane, Rascal and Giffen each notched a first-place finish, while Crane and Tysell finished in the top three in three of their four races. The B Division boat totaled 52 points, only four points behind a division-best 48 by Boston College.

The Jumbos will take the water again as they travel to New London, Conn., to compete in the Danmark Trophy this weekend (Oct. 5-6).

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