Kirkland resident Talia Toland won the U.S. Junior Women’s Singlehanded Championship as the fleet of 28 Laser Radials competed at the three day regatta on Lake Washington on Sunday. The event was hosted by Sail Sand Point.

Toland enjoyed a three-point lead against Kiera O’Reardon of Houston through eight races entering Sunday’s final two races. With the Nancy Leiter Clagett Memorial Trophy on the line and two 50-minute races to go, Toland won her third race of the Championship during Race 9 and gained two more points on O’Reardon, who placed third.

“This is my third year sailing at the Leiter Trophy and it’s great to finally put it all together in my home venue,” Toland said. “It was kind of cool that we had different wind direction every day of the regatta. I stayed in the pressure and stayed pointing towards the mark and kept a cool head in the shifty conditions, which helped a lot when your patient.”

In the 10th and final race, Toland ensured O’Reardon did not catch her in the standings by finishing three places ahead of her (14th to 17th) to win the Leiter Trophy.

“I had a chance to work with all the coaches, which is really great. It’s cool to see how I’ve developed from year to year at this event,” Toland said. “Thank you to US Sailing, Sail Sand Point, the Clagett family and everyone who helped host this regatta. It was a great venue with great coaches and a lot of fun.”

Toland placed third at this Championship last year and sixth in 2014.

The top six boats qualified for early acceptance to the 2017 U.S. Youth Sailing Championships – a qualifier for the 2017 ISAF Youth World Championships in Israel.