[Baltimore Sun] Severn School sailing surprises by capturing doublehanded national championship
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Severn School varsity sailing fielded one of the strongest teams in program history in 2023. Led by an extremely talented senior class, the Admirals captured the Interscholastic Sailing Association Team Race national championship for the Baker Trophy.
With all five seniors — Robbie Meek (Harvard), Kyle Reinecke (Navy), Tommy Sitzmann (Stanford), Jed Lory (Roger Williams) and Lilly Baker (Dartmouth) — moving on to the college ranks, Severn found itself in rebuilding mode.
Remarkably, a team consisting almost entirely of new parts managed to reach the pinnacle of the sport for the second straight season. Skippers Annie Sitzmann and Harrison Szot led the way as Severn stunned the competition by capturing the ISSA Doublehanded national championship, held June 1-2 in Charleston, South Carolina.
Szot and crew Scarlet Harris placed first in B Division, while Sitzmann and crew Helena English finished third in A Division as Severn totaled 276 points — 18 better than runner-up Antilles School.
It marks just the second time in program history the Admirals have hoisted the prestigious Clifford D. Mallory Trophy. Future Olympian Joe Morris was the leader of the 2008 squad that previously secured the doublehanded national championship.
Veteran coach Tom Sitzmann used the word “miraculous” to describe what the Admirals accomplished. Severn needed a furious comeback just to qualify for nationals and was certainly not among the favorites in a 20-team field featuring such perennial powerhouses as Antilles, St. George’s, Mater Dei and Point Loma.
“This is not something many people saw coming or thought could ever happen,” Sitzmann said. “I cannot say enough about this group. I would describe them as overachievers, and I mean that with the utmost respect and admiration. It means you have worked really hard to achieve something special.”
Severn School sailing now has a total of six national championships with all coming during the tenure of Sitzmann, who took over in 2005. The Admirals have produced three singlehanded (Cressy Trophy) champions in addition to the two Mallory Trophy titles and one Baker Trophy crown.
English and Harris were the only returning team members who sailed in the national championships last season. They served as crew at both the Baker Trophy and Mallory Trophy competitions with Severn placing second at the latter regatta.
The Admirals had no returning skippers with significant experience as Meek, Reinecke and Tommy Sitzmann held those roles. Annie Sitzmann and Szot, a sophomore and freshman, respectively, received on-the-job training on how to handle the skipper responsibilities.
“We had no pressure or expectations going into this season, which was helpful,” Coach Sitzmann said. “We’re very fortunate to have an extremely deep team, so there is great competition in practice and that benefits everyone. This team made tremendous improvement over the course of the season.”
At one point during the Mid-Atlantic Interscholastic Sailing Association qualifier, Severn was in eighth place with seemingly no shot to earn a berth at nationals. The Admirals pulled it together and battled back to place second behind Christ Church.
Severn’s A Division team of skipper Annie Sitzmann and crew Helena English celebrate clinching the Interscholastic Sailing Association doublehanded national championship. (Courtesy photo)
ISSA Doublehanded Nationals was held on Charleston Harbor, a famously challenging venue because of the strong and tricky currents. That is not an element Severn, which practices daily on the Magothy River, is accustomed to encountering.
Saturday’s racing was held in easterly winds that started around 6 knots and built to 17. Organizers set the race course on the infamous Crab Bank off the coast of Mount Pleasant, an area of Charleston Harbor known for its shifty winds and dynamic current.
With the A Division sailing Flying Juniors and the B Division aboard Club 420s, a total of 12 races were completed with Ransom Everglades sitting atop the standings after Day 1.
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On Sunday, southerly winds allowed the race committee to set a course on the Cooper River near the aircraft carrier USS Yorktown. Eight more races were held in 6 to 12 knot breeze with Severn moving from third to first in the standings.
“Our sailors were on a mission Sunday and just sailed really, really well. We stuck to the simple things and never got rattled; we stayed out of foul trouble,” Coach Sitzmann said. “It was an intensely competitive regatta and our sailors were up to the challenge. I thought the resiliency and mental toughness the team showed throughout was very impressive.”
Sitzmann credited English and Harris for bringing national championship experience to the Severn boats and praised the performance of his daughter and Szot, who had never competed at that level.
“Those two skippers did an absolutely amazing job at nationals. It was truly stunning how well they both performed under pressure,” he said.
Sitzmann acknowledged it took several days for reality to sink in that Severn secured a national crown in a year it was not expected to contend. He acknowledged it was “rather amazing” to capture the Baker Trophy and Mallory Trophy in consecutive campaigns.
“Winning a national championship is such a rare thing. If it happens once in your lifetime you should consider yourself blessed,” he said.
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