Ute Skiers Fall To Sixth At NCAAs

Friday, March 10

Steamboat, Colo.

All Day

University of Utah

NCAA Skiing Championships (SL)

3/10/2006 12:00 AM | Skiing

March 10, 2006

Complete Team Results in PDF Format
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Complete Men's Slalom Results in PDF Format
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Complete Women's Slalom Results in PDF Format
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STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, Colo. -- On the final day of alpine action, the University of Utah ski team fell to sixth after competing in the slalom at the 2006 NCAA National Skiing Championships. The Ute skiers trail third place defending NCAA champion Denver by a significant deficit and will have to make a valiant comeback in tomorrow's 15/20-km freestyle to keep the podium dream alive.

"It was really tough out there today," said head coach Eli Brown. "It was survival of the fittest, knowing half the field ended up hiking with the tight icy conditions. We raced our hardest and we showed a lot of heart."

With six out of eight events in the books, the hunt for the NCAA crown is a battle between three western schools in powerhouse Colorado (447) and the `04 NCAA champion New Mexico (442), with Denver (420.5) still in contention.

After a tremendous performance in Wednesday's giant slalom, the men's downhillers had a rough day on the illuminated slalom course, scoring only two skiers. NCAA GS champion Scott Veenis ended up crashing and having to hike, resulting in a 34th-place finish. Senior Will McDonald left the gate, finishing 18th to headline the Utes with a time of 1:17.17. Junior Gaspar Perricone tallied a 27th-place finish with a two-run time of 1:21.95.

Sophomore Kim Stephens raced to a 21st-place finish with a two-run time of 1:30.49. Freshman Mikaela Grassl finished 28th with a time of 1:53.53, while senior All-American transfer Erika Hogan skied 0.04 seconds behind teammate Grassl to take 29th in 1:53.57.

Next up, Utah will make its last push for a podium finish at the 53rd annual NCAA Championships, competing in the 15/20-km skate at Howelsen Hill resort. The men's mass start will take place at 10:00 a.m. (MST) and the women's start begins at noon. The flower ceremony will take place immediately following.

"We are going into tomorrow's race with the same attitude we came here with and that is to ski hard," remarked Brown. "We have had some great training and we are fired up for the skate. All we can do is our best and we will see where the chips fall."

NCAA Championship Team Scores -- 1. Colorado 447, 2. New Mexico 442, 3. Denver 420.5, 4. Vermont 410, 5. Dartmouth 382.5, 6. Utah 336, 7. Middlebury 322, 8. New Hampshire 306, 9. Alaska-Anchorage 297, 10. Nevada 199; 11. Bates 156, 12. Williams 137.5, 13. Montana State 134, 14. Colby 130.5, 15. Alaska-Fairbanks 129, 16 Northern Michigan 108; 17. Western State 86.5, 18. Boise State 50, 19. Michigan Tech 37, 20. Whitman 26.5, 21. St. Olaf 12, 22. Wisconsin-Green Bay 10, 23. St. Lawrence 5, 24. Gustavus Adolphus 2.