Koch Tacks Up Another Win : America’s Cup: Conner’s tacking strategy doesn’t help as Star & Stripes falls to 0-2 in defender finals.

America’s Cup rookie Bill Koch skippered America 3 to a 1-minute 47-second victory over three-time winner Dennis Conner’s Stars & Stripes Monday to take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-13 defender finals.

In the challenger final, Italy’s Il Moro di Venezia held off hard-charging New Zealand to eke out a one-second victory and even the best-of-nine series at 1-1.

America 3’s victory extended its winning streak over Stars & Stripes to four and its overall record against Stars & Stripes to 10-3.

America’s Cup veteran Buddy Melges steered America 3 to a 26-second lead at the end of the third leg of the eight-leg, 20.03-nautical-mile course, then turned the helm over to Koch.

Sailing in 10- to 12- knot northwesterly breezes, Koch stretched his lead over Conner to 1:27 at the end of the three reaching legs, Nos. 4, 5 and 6. On the reaching, or so-called “Z” legs, the boats sail across the wind, the fastest point of sail.

Conner forced Melges, the helmsman, into a fierce tacking duel on the 2.7-mile third leg. Stars & Stripes tacked a grueling 37 times, trying to force America 3’s crew, which tacked 35 times, into making a costly mistake.

But the America 3 crew performed flawlessly and added another six seconds, about one boat length, to its 20-second lead.

Prior to the start, Conner and America 3 starting helmsman David Dellenbaugh played chicken, sitting head-to-wind, almost dead in the water. Each helmsman was trying to out-wait the other as Conner protected the favored left side of the starting line. Both boats started late, with America 3 taking a one-second lead which was never relinquished.

America 3, which had an elapsed time of 2 hours 46 minutes, will take on Stars & Stripes again Wednesday. Today is a lay day.

New Zealand flew a protest flag immediately after crossing the finish line, apparently claiming that Il Moro did not leave it enough room to cross the line. The protest was dismissed by the on-the-water umpires.

The situation was almost identical to the finish of the fourth race of the semifinal round when New Zealand crossed one second ahead of Il Moro but was disqualified for hitting the marker buoy.

Monday’s victory was only the third Italian triumph over the New Zealand, which still hold a 5-3 overall edge over the Italians.

The two boats were never more than 19 seconds apart during the 20-mile race. The lead changed four times. At the end of the second leg, the two boats rounded the marker buoy with only a half-second between them.

New Zealand led most of the race, sailing ahead of Il Moro after a seesaw battle during the first windward leg. But Il Moro tenaciously hung on and broke through the Kiwis’ tight cover on the seventh leg, which is sailed upwind.

New Zealand, trailing by 19 seconds with only the final downwind leg to go, battled back to draw even as the boats closed on the finish line.

The two boats will meet again Wednesday.

The beleaguered America’s Cup Organizing Committee was dealt a $176,898 blow when a Los Angeles flight service was allowed to attach its assets.

San Diego County Superior Court granted a writ of attachment allowing E.J. Helicopters to tie up ACOC assets to ensure the award is paid, said Charles Harris, attorney for the flight service.

The award was determined in arbitration proceedings last week.

The ACOC is responsible for staging the America’s Cup.

“We are giving them 48 hours to come up with a proposal to pay the money,” Harris said. If the organizers don’t pay up, Harris said he will have the U.S. marshall enforce the court’s order.

The flight service had sought $310,000 in lost profits from the ACOC after claiming the ACOC terminated its $1.05-million contract without just cause.

The ACOC is taking steps to satisfy the award, but payment is not required until the judgement is actually served, said ACOC spokeswoman Jane Eagleson.

Bankruptcy rumors, which first emerged last summer when the ACOC restructured its $6.5-million debt, resurfaced Monday. But the organization does not intend to file for protection from its creditors under Chapter 11 of the bankruptcy laws, said Tom Mitchell, ACOC vice president of media relations.

E.J. Helicopters was contracted by the organizing committee last year to furnish the aircraft needed to provide television coverage of the event. The contract was terminated when the ACOC transferred its broadcast rights to the America’s Cup Television (ACTV) consortium in January.