The Duxbury High School sailing team made the history books on Saturday, winning the 15th Fritz Mark Trophy in team racing. The team racing championship has been sailed since 1974 and was renamed the Fritz Mark Trophy in 1996. Since the Mark Trophy has been in place only three teams have won: Tabor (7), St. George’s (4) and the Williams School (Conn.) once.

Duxbury becomes the first public school to defeat the private school powerhouses and win the trophy, making the Dragons the number one team in New England high school sailing.

“Our sailors were phenomenal,” said Coach Hans Jensen. “We have worked very hard this spring, and winning this trophy is the fruit of all our labor. Credit goes out to the entire team that has been able to push these guys and girls hard all year long.”

The team proved they are one of the best teams in the country, with their highlight coming in the first race of the second round robin of the championship round against Tabor. The Marion school had a great start, as Duxbury played catch up the entire race until about 150 yards before the finish. Andrew Sommer and Addy White were able to use their boat positioning against a Tabor boat that passed, allowing Julia Leonard and Alyssa Siefert to ease into second.

Sommer and White finished third, while Zach Runci and Katie Gluskin held off the third Tabor boat in sixth and finished fifth for a combined score of 10 that qualified for the win.

It was an impressive come-from-behind victory and gave Duxbury enough of a lead to win the regatta, despite dropping the final two races to Moses Brown and St. George’s.

“Everyone sailed very consistently,” said Jensen. “Andrew and Addy, along with Zach and Katie had impeccable boat handling that was devastating to our opponents. Julia and Alyssa had lights out boat speed all day, continuously finishing in the top spots and winning several races.”

Next stop for the Dragons is Palo Alto, California, where they will sail for the Baker Trophy in the National Team Race Championships this weekend, along with defending champion, St. George’s.

With St. George’s winning the Baker Trophy last season and Tabor finishing second, Jensen and his team are optimistic that they have a legitimate shot at winning the national title.

“Our chances of being the best in the country are looking good, but it’s going to take a lot of focus and consistent sailing to beat the top eight schools in the country,” said Jensen.