Happened in club race.

Windward Mark.
1.    G enters zone first on Stb, below layline. Y enters after on port.
2.    G tacks in front of Y, and completes tack.
2.5. Y, with significantly more speed chooses to go above G (but does not pass head to wind).
3.    Y attempts to take mark room. G calls Leeward. There isn't enough room for Y to pass between G and the mark. Y chooses to hit mark to avoid contact with G.
4.    Y rounds mark, calls protest, and continues sailing without doing penalty turn.

I think that Y has rights as inside boat under 18.2a, and should be exonerated for hitting the mark, but general consensus was that Y poked their nose where it didn't belong. Thoughts?