MONTREAL (October 23, 2017) - Seven Queen's sailors traveled to Montreal this past weekend for the CICSA Team Racing National Championship to compete and to defend their title for the seventh consecutive season. Sailing for the Gaels this weekend was Zac Baum, Sam Bonin, Aleksander Magi, Scott Gittens, Marc de Verteuil, Nicholas Schute and Julia Manarin.

A typical day at Royal St. Lawrence Yacht Club, the first day of sailing brought light winds and lots of current. By the end of the first day, Queen's was tied with McMaster and McGill - each team with two wins and no losses.

Starting out day two, Queen's first race of the day was against McGill. The race was significant for the Gaels sailing team, as they needed to remain undefeated to ensure a spot in the finals. When the dust settled and the round robin was completed, McGill, Queen's and McMaster were all tied with six wins and one loss a piece.

Through the tie-break, McGill and Queen's went on the final with 20 and 21 points respectively to McMaster's 22. In the first race of the final series, Queen's pulled out a win against McGill with a 1-3-6. In the second race of the final series, Queen's sailors struggled on the first upwind and rounded the 1st mark with a 4-5-6.

On the downwind, Queen's closed the gap and rounded in the 2-5-6 to cause a break in McGill's pack. Before the upwind leg, Queen's pulled ahead and led with a 1-4-5 coming into the last upwind leg. With Aleksander Magi and Julia Manarin winning the race and McGill with a boat in deep sixth, Queen's crossed the line with a 4-5 to defend their championship title for the seventh consecutive season