CASTINE--Maine Maritime Academy Sailing had a very busy weekend of regattas with the Mariners racing in a women's-only event, the Mrs. Hurst Bowl, hosted by Dartmouth College and MMA competing co-ed at the Tufts University Hood Trophy.

The highlight was the Bowl results at Dartmouth as Maine Maritime qualified for the first round of the Atlantic Coast Championships. The ACCs are a huge accomplishment for MMA as neither a women's nor coed squad has qualified for a dinghy championship of this caliber.

Overall, MMA was 14th of 17 teams with 228 points in the Mrs. Hurst Bowl. The Mariners did improve by four points on the second day from the first. This regatta honors long-time Dartmouth sailing supporter and general matriarch Christina Hurst, who also was a huge fan of college sailing. It was a tricky start to Saturday, with the breeze coming out of the east at 2-6 knots and throughout a range of some 120 degrees. It eventually settled into an easterly wind over the boathouse that trended right throughout the day until the sailors had a nice southeast wind flowing down the lake.

In Hood Trophy action at Tufts, MMA was 19th out of 20 teams with 416 points. The Mariners had a terrific opening day with a 184, which put them in 17th place. But at one point, the team was fifth during the midpoint of racing.