Ute Skiers Finish Fourth At Nevada Invitational

Friday, January 16

Auburn Ski Club, Calif/Sugar Bowl, Calif.

TBA

University of Utah

Nevada Invitational

Ute Skiers Finish Fourth At Nevada Invitational

1/16/2004 12:00 AM | Skiing

Jan. 16, 2004

DONNER SUMMIT, Calif. - The University of Utah slipped from second-place to fourth in the final day of the Nevada Invitational, Friday, Jan. 16. Denver managed to remain on top followed by Colorado. The Lobos of New Mexico placed third to round out the top three.

"This was a really difficult weekend," said Head Coach Kevin Sweeney. "There were many bright spots, but some troubling ones as well. We are optimistic about our performances. The team really kept charging and that was great to see as a coach."

The men's nordic team continued to ski well piloting the Utes to a 70 point total in the 20-km classical. Leading the way for Utah was Henning Dybendal. The junior torched the competition winning the event with a time of 52:18.6. Brothers Daniel Sonntag and Benjamin Sonntag skied to a eighth- and 15th-place finish, respectively. Freshman Casey Simons gave a great effort finishing 17th with a time of 56:16.3.

"It was absolutely fantastic to see Henning win in a very demanding classical course," remarked Sweeney. "It was also really nice to see Daniel and Ben (Sonntag) putting together a really solid opening weekend. They are going to have a bright skiing future."

On the women's side, Utah tallied to a third-place finish in the 15-km classical, scoring 67 points. Sophomore Jenny Hansson raced to a sixth-place finish beating out CU's Jana Reheema by a time of 48:07.4. Junior Barbro Hatlevik came in placing eighth in 48:13.5, while freshman Sandra Gredig followed up finishing 14th with a two-run time of 49:06.9.

"Our women's team skied well," said Sweeney. "It was nice to see Jenny and Barbro scoring in the top-10."

The Sugar Bowl was the venue for the alpine events, where junior Ben Thornhill skied to a sixth-place finish with a time of 1:24.64. Freshman Gaspar Perricone had a great second run to finish 14th with a two-run time of 1:25.44. Utah's Will McDonald won the first run, but ended up not finishing the second. Sophomore Andi Weiser fell and was unable to finish the event.

On the women's side, freshman Lauren Lattimer came through skiing to a sixth-place finish in 1:25.31. Both April Mancuso and Rowena Hyldahl had top-25 finishes.

Bad news for the alpine team as junior Elisha Stephens wrecked during yesterday's slalom event. The Park City, Utah, native will miss the rest of the season due to an unfortunate knee injury.

"This was a tough day as a team," said Head Alpine Coach Aaron Atkins. "We had some great individual results, but as a team we didn't come together. Elisha was skiing so well and it is going to be difficult with her being injured."

Next up, the Ute cross country team will host the second-half of the Utah Invitational at Soldier Hollow, Utah, Jan. 23-24. The 10-team event will consist of the 5/10-km classical and the 10/15-km freestyle. Race times are TBA.

Nevada Invitational Final Results:

1. Denver               597.02. Colorado             521.03. New Mexico           515.04. Utah                 496.05. Alaska Anchorage     425.06. Nevada               358.07. Montana State        244.08. Western State        222.09. Whitman College      195.010. Boise State          73.0