Huntington sailor Erik Storck drops from Olympic contention

Despite a smattering of strong showings over the course of the last week, Huntington sailor Erik Storck and crewmate Trevor Moore weren't able to overcome critical missteps in the final four races, dropping them out of Olympic contention in the men's 49er class Monday in Weymouth, England.

Storck and Moore placed eighth and 17th in Races 14 and 15 of the 15-series regatta, making Team USA 15th out of 20 overall. The top 10 teams advance to the medal round Wednesday.

"Right now, there's a bit of a sting, because we know we didn't perform to our ability," Storck said.

The Americans had climbed back to 10th place after finishes of second, 17th and fifth on Friday, but a last-place finish Sunday, followed by 17th in Race 13 all but ended their Olympic hopes. Monday, Storck and Moore reached as high as fourth place in the second half of their first race before losing three boats by the next mark. They finished 1 minute, 35 seconds behind winner Australia. Winds picked up in the next race but the Americans didn't -- again losing steam down the stretch to finish exactly three minutes behind first-place Italy.

In the women's Elliott 6-meter race, Spain edged out Denmark by three seconds in the final round-robin race, painting a clearer picture of the knockout stage for Bayport's Debbie Capozzi and the rest of Team USA. Capozzi and her team that includes skipper Anna Tunnicliffe and crew mate Molly O'Bryan Vandemoer, are fourth of eight teams and sail in a quarterfinal Tuesday against Finland.

Also competing Tuesday are Shelter Island skipper Amanda Clark and crew mate Sarah Lihan, who will take part in Race 7 and Race 8 of the women's 470, a 10-series regatta that precedes the medal round. The duo is currently eighth of 20.