The regatta allowed the Crimson to work on determining which three skippers will sail as its A-team for the more critical team races to follow later in the season. Five skippers—the four who sailed at Brown as well as freshman Kyle Kovacs, who skippered the previous weekend in Charleston—are contending for the available slots.

“Right now, it’s early in the season and it’s unclear who will sail the third slot. We’re giving everyone the chance to sail, especially early in the season when there’s not that much at stake,” Schlitz said.

Johnson relayed that the team’s coaches want to have a lineup in place by the weekend of March 26-27. While Porter and Johnson are likely to skipper two of the team racing dinghies, the determination will be made based on performance in practice as well as regattas.

“To an extent there’s pressure to be on the A-team. It’s great. We can put any of [the skippers] in and know there’s going to be a great effort,” Johnson said. “Practice is going to be really competitive.”

And the decision will be made in time for the meat of the team’s season. Harvard will see serious intersectional competition at Truxton Umstead, a fleet racing regatta at Navy March 19-20 and at Tufts’ Friis Trophy Team Race April 9-10.

“We’re looking for big things in NEISA [the New England Intercollegiate Sailing Association] in the future,” Johnson said.

—Staff writer Samuel C. Scott can be reached at sscott@fas.harvard.edu.