Albertson College Invitational
Brundage Mountain, McCall, Idaho
Saturday, January 12
Albertson College Invitational
Brundage Mountain, McCall, Idaho
Russ Crandall led a one-two-three sweep in the men's giant slalom as the Missionary alpine ski teams kicked off the Northwest Collegiate Ski Conference season with a pair of victories Saturday at Brundage Mountain near McCall, Idaho.
Crandall, a sophomore from Park City, Utah, notched his first collegiate victory with a time of 1:54.99 for his two runs down the hill. Teammates Doug Whitfield and Arne Backstrom, both juniors, were second and third, respectively, in 1:56.25 and 1:56.60. Dan Cook, a freshman, wasn't far behind, placing fifth in 2:02.02.
"It was great to see Russ get his first win at the college level," Whitman coach Tom Olson said. "He's been very persistent in both his dryland training and in getting as much time on snow as possible. He was back home in Park City during the semester break, skiing a lot."
Crandall's best finish last year in a conference race was sixth place.
In the women's giant Saturday, Whitman pulled out a team victory despite losing its top two seeds. Senior Eva Cardova lost a ski at the very beginning of her first run, and sophomore Michelle Wall suffered the same fate midway through her second run.
Whitman sophomore Julia Babilis helped fill the gap, placing second in 1:59.81. Puget Sound's Larissa Felli won the event in 1:59.50.
Dana Wong, a Whitman senior skiing her first race after a one-year absence, was third in 2:03.05. Sophomore Lindsay Barksdale was fourth in 2:03.70. Carolyn Newcom, a freshman from Walla Walla, finished in 27th place in 2:21.70.
The Missionary women took first in the team scoring with a combined time of 366.56 seconds for their top three. Puget Sound was second, almost 12 seconds back. Albertson, the host school, was third followed by the University of Oregon and Seattle University in fourth and fifth, respectively.
Rounding out the women's field, in order, were the universities of Washington and Idaho, Washington State, Pacific Lutheran, and Gonzaga.
"It was an awesome team victory and show of depth for our women's team," Olson said. "Winning the team scoring despite losing our top two seeds shows how many talented skiers we have."
Both Whitman squads spent three days in training at Brundage prior to Saturday's race. "The training was great, and we definitely need it, but it aggravated a few old injury problems for both Eva and Michelle," Olson noted. "Eva's back has been acting up again, and Michelle's knee has been giving her some trouble as well."
With Missionary skiers sweeping the top three spots in the men's event, Whitman cruised to an 18-second victory in the team scoring. Whitman was first with a combined time of 347.84 seconds for its top three. Albertson took second in 365.82, while the University of Washington was third in 376.02. Puget Sound and Seattle rounded out the men's top five.
Next in line in the men's team scoring were Idaho, Central Oregon College, Gonzaga, Washington State, Oregon, Pacific Lutheran and Boise State.
Whitman's twins, Aaron and Ari Stiassny, finished 11th and 36th, respectively, in times of 2:02.52 and 2:12.36. "Aaron had a few problems on his second run, and Ari had trouble on both runs," Olson noted. "But we know that they can and will ski better than that."
Both Whitman alpine teams have won the past eight conference titles. The second of eight conference events takes place Sunday at Brundage Mountain.
Women's Results Men's Results
Sunday, January 13
Albertson College Invitational
Brundage Mountain, McCall, Idaho
With skiers filling the top two spots in both the men's and women's giant slalom events, the Whitman alpine teams tacked on two more Northwest Collegiate Ski Conference victories Sunday afternoon at Brundage Mountain near McCall, Idaho.
"It was another good, successful day for Whitman," alpine coach Tom Olson said. "We have some outstanding athletes, and they skied like it today."
Missionary sophomore Julia Babilis, after placing second in Saturday's event, took first on Sunday with a total time of 1:56.79 for her two runs. Senior teammate Eva Cardova, who lost a ski and was disqualified in Saturday's first run, bounced back to place second on Sunday in 1:58.14, edging Puget Sound's Larissa Felli by three-tenths of a second.
Whitman junior Arne Backstrom won the men's event in 1:51.82. Teammate Doug Whitfield, also a junior, was second in 1:54.02, about two seconds in front of third-place Scott McCoy of the University of Washington.
Albertson College hosts the season's first two NCSC events and gives high-point trophies to the male and female skiers who score the most individual World Cup points in the two-day competition. Whitman's Babilis won the women's trophy for a second straight year, while Backstrom edged Whitfield on a tie-breaker for the men's trophy. Whitfield was second and Backstrom third in Saturday's event, which was won by Whitman sophomore Russ Crandall.
In third place after Sunday's first run, Crandall had trouble near the end of his second run and slipped to 15th place with a total time of 2:01.37.
Whitman freshman Dan Cook enjoyed a strong second run on Sunday, moving up to place sixth in 1:56.94. Twins Aaron and Ari Stiassny placed seventh and ninth, respectively, in 1:59.13 and 1:59.91.
In the men's team scoring Sunday, Whitman was first with a combined time of 344.97 seconds for its top three. The University of Washington was second in 366.16, narrowly edging third-place Albertson and 366.24 team time. Oregon fourth and Idaho fifth.
Also placing Sunday for the Whitman women were senior Dana Wong, 4th, 1:59.96; sophomore Lindsay Barksdale, 7th, 2:01.76; and sophomore Michelle Wall, 11th, 2:04.95. Freshman Carolyn Newcom started in the 61st spot but moved up to finish in 31st place.
"Michelle is one of our best skiers, but her knee is really bothering her," Olson said. "She skied today and wanted to finish for the team, just in case any of our women fell while really getting after the course."
The Whitman women won the team scoring with a top-three time of 354.89 seconds. Albertson took second in 373.48, while Puget Sound was third in 374.77. Washington and Idaho rounded out the top five.
Women's Results Men's Results
Saturday, January 26
Mt. Spokane, Wash.
On a day marred by poor racing conditions, computer glitches and a severe injury to one of the competitors, the Whitman alpine ski teams maintained their dominance as the Northwest Collegiate Ski Conference season continued with a pair of slalom events Saturday at Mt. Spokane.
The Missionary women took first place with a combined time of 338.74 seconds for its top three finishers. The University of Puget Sound was more than 11 seconds back in the No. 2 spot with a team score of 359.95 seconds. Rounding out the top five in a 13-school field were the University of Washington (382.95), Seattle University (389.19), and Albertson College (392.99).
Meanwhile, the Whitman men chalked up their third victory in three conference events with a team time of 326.73 seconds. The University of British Columbia was second in 333.92, followed by Washington (347.11), Albertson (354.71), and Puget Sound (355.57).
Computer problems following the races delayed an accurate release of the individual placings, but as those results would eventually show, Whitman's Arne Backstrom and Michelle Wall emerged as individual victors.
Backstrom, a junior, won the men's event with a time of 1:42.87 for his two runs down the hill. Winning his second consecutive event, Backstrom edged the University of British Columbia's Paul Boskovich by nearly a second.
Daniel Cook, a Whitman freshman, used a strong second run to place 11th in 1:51.00. Junior teammate Doug Whitfield also rallied on his second run to finish 16th in 1:52.86. Also racing for the Whitman men were Ari Stiassny, 18th, 1:53.42; Aaron Stiasnny, 19th, 1:53.92; and Russ Crandall, 20th, 1:58.02.
Wall, a sophomore, led a 1-2-3 sweep in the women's race. Her winning time was 1:52.09, edging sophomore teammate Julia Babilis, who won the second run and finished with a total time of 1:53.06. Missionary senior Eva Cardova took third place in 1:53.60.
Others placing for the Whitman women were Lindsay Barksdale, 9th, 1:57.04; Dana Wong, 12th, 1:59.18; and Carolyn Newcom, 18th, 2:09.16.
The women's second run was delayed for about an hour when one of the skiers fell on the course and suffered possible back and neck injuries, Olson said. "They used the back board and neck brace, so it took some time to get her off the hill as safely as possible. With that delay, it was about 4:30 and getting dark before the men's second run was completed."
"The conditions for racing were just horrible," Olson added. "The mountain has 138 inches of incredibly soft snow. "You step out of your skis, even on the groomed portions, and you might sink to your knees or mid-thigh. From a race organizer's standpoint, I don't know how we pulled it off. It was a nightmare."
Other participating schools were the universities of Oregon and Idaho, Washington State, Oregon State, Boise State, Gonzaga, Central Oregon College, and Pacific Lutheran.
Two more slalom races are planned for Sunday at Mt. Spokane.
Sunday, January 27
Mt. Spokane, Wash.
With Michelle Wall and Julia Babilis going one-two in the women's race and Arne Backstrom winning the men's event, the Whitman alpine ski teams tacked on two more victories Sunday in Northwest Collegiate Ski Conference action at Mt. Spokane.
With four events complete and the conference season half over, both Whitman teams remain undefeated and headed for their ninth consecutive conference titles.
Wall, a sophomore, won the women's slalom Sunday with a time of 1:45.76 for her two runs down the hill. Babilis, also a sophomore, took second place in 1:45.20.
Backstrom, a junior, captured the men's slalom with a time of 1:36.57, well ahead of the runnerup, Scott McCoy of the University of Washington, and his 1:40.17 clocking. It was Backstrom's third consecutive victory. Teammate Doug Whitfield, also a junior, survived a bobble on one of his runs to place fifth in 1:42.60.
As a team, the Whitman men won Sunday's slalom with a team score of 302.80 seconds for their top three finishers. The University of Washington was nearly 20 seconds back in second place with a team score of 322.61 seconds. Next in line were the University of British Columbia (325.25), Central Oregon College (327.09), and the University of Idaho (330.00).
A third junior, Aaron Stiassny, provided Whitman with its third team score. He placed eighth in 1:43.63. Others placing for the Missionaries included freshman Daniel Cook, who was 12th in 1:45.19, and junior Ari Stiassny, who was 19th in 1:49.61. Sophomore Russ Crandall, who won the first conference event of the season earlier this month, missed a gate on his second run Sunday and placed 27th in 1:55.13.
The Whitman women also rolled to an easy victory in Sunday's team scoring. The Missionaries were first with a time of 316.56 seconds, followed by Albertson College (334.40), University of Puget Sound (342.19), Washington (361.40), and Idaho (378.48).
Senior Eva Cardova also contributed to the women's scoring for Whitman by placing sixth in 1:47.63, about a half-second out of fourth place. Missionary sophomore Lindsay Barksdale was seventh in 1:48.72, while senior Dana Wong was 10th in 1:48.99. Freshman Carolyn Newcom hiked on her first run and placed 45th in 2:25.40.
Sunday's races included 13 men's teams and 12 schools on the women's side.
"The consistency our athletes showed this weekend was amazing when you consider how little training they've had in the slalom," Whitman alpine coach Tom Olson said. "We had five women in the top ten on Sunday, and four men in the top 12. That's not bad under any circumstances."
"We've got half the conference season left, but I'm already looking forward to taking this group to regionals and nationals," Olson added. "We're skiing as well as a team as we ever have. We're showing much more maturity than we have the past few years."
The conference season continues next weekend with a pair of giant slalom events at Oregon's Mt. Hood Meadows.
Saturday, February 2
Mt. Hood Meadows
The Whitman College alpine ski teams continued their season-long domination of the Northwest Collegiate Ski Conference on Saturday, winning their fifth straight events with giant slalom victories at Oregon's Mt. Hood Meadows.
Whitman athletes filled four of the top six spots in both the men's and women's events.
Russ Crandall, a Missionary sophomore, notched his second victory of the season on the men's side. Crandall won the first run and held off challenges from junior teammates Arne Backstrom and Doug Whitfield to place first overall in 1:53.02. Backstrom was second in 1:53.50, while Whitfield won the second run and took third overall in 1:54.00.
Whitman freshman Daniel Cook finished in sixth in 1:57.02. Junior Ari Stiassny was 10th in 1:58.44, barely edging twin brother Aaron Stiassny, who was 11th in 1:58.46.
"To have six guys in the top 11 is just incredible," Whitman coach Tom Olson said.
The Missionary women were almost as dominant, even though one of their top skiers, Michelle Wall, did not compete. "We're going to let Michelle rest her knees and hopefully keep her healthy for regionals and nationals," Olson said.
Puget Sound's Larissa Felli won both runs and edged Whitman senior Eva Cardova by less than a half of a second. Felli was first in 1:58.19, followed by Cardova in 1:58.43. Missionary sophomores Lindsay Barksdale and Julia Babilis were third and fourth, respectively, in 2:00.07 and 2:00.18. Dana Wong, a Whitman senior, took sixth in 2:02.69.
Walla Walla's Carolyn Newcom, a Whitman freshman, finished 22nd overal in 2:14.50.
In the team scoring, the Missionary men won with a time of 340.51 seconds for their top three finishers. Albertson was a distant second in 359.57, followed by the University of Idaho (366.26), Central Oregon College (369.84) and Seattle University (369.87).
The rest of the men's field, in order of placement, was Puget Sound, Oregon, Washington State, University of British Columbia, Washington, Gonzaga, Pacific Lutheran, and Boise State.
The Whitman women compiled a first-place team score of 358.68 seconds. Puget Sound was the runnerup in 369.86. Rounding out the women's top five were Albertson (371.15), Idaho (405.37) and the University of British Columbia (407.34).
Other schools in the women's competition, in their order of finish, were Washington, Seattle, Washington State, Oregon, Gonzaga, Pacific Lutheran, Boise State, and Oregon State.
"It's great to see both of our teams doing so well, especially since we haven't had any gate training in almost a month," Olson said. "Our area has had so much snow that all we can do during the week is free ski. We're basically getting by on race day with raw talent."
If snowfall lessens in the days ahead, local training sites can be groomed to support gate training, Olson said. "We're skiing well right now, but we know we can do better with more training. We hope we can get that training before the regional championships, when the competition will be a lot tougher."
The conference season continues Sunday with two more giant slalom events at Mt. Hood Meadows. If the Whitman teams win again, giving them six straight victories to start the season, they will clinch their ninth consecutive conference titles.
The season ends next weekend with slalom races at Idaho's Schweitzer Mountain.
Sunday, February 3
Mt. Hood Meadows
Remaining undefeated on the season, the Whitman alpine ski teams clinched their ninth consecutive Northwest Collegiate Ski Conference titles with giant slalom victories Sunday at Oregon's Mt. Hood Meadows.
After placing second three times earlier in the season and finishing third on Saturday, Whitman junior Doug Whitfield won the men's race Sunday in 1:54.91 for his two runs. Arne Backstrom, also a junior, was the runner-up for a second straight day in 1:55.52. Sophomore Russ Crandall, Saturday's winner, was third Sunday in 1:55.60.
Puget Sound's Larissa Felli won the women's race Sunday, chalking up her second victory of the weekend. Felli was timed in 1:58.85, finishing ahead of three Whitman skiers, just as she did on Saturday. Senior Eva Cardova again took second place, posting a combined time of 2:00.18. Sophomores Lindsay Barksdale and Julia Babilis were third and fourth, also duplicating their places from Saturday, with times of 2:01.39 and 2:01.63.
Dana Wong, a Whitman senior, placed eighth Sunday in 2:06.58. Walla Walla's Carolyn Newcom, a Missionary freshman, had trouble on her second run and slipped to 52nd place. Michelle Wall, a sophomore and one of Whitman's top skiers, sat out for a second straight day to rest a chronic knee injury.
In the women's team scoring, Whitman was first with a total time of 363.20 seconds for its top three finishers. Puget Sound was second in 371.51. Rounding out the top five in a field of 13 schools were the University of Oregon (393.95), Albertson (396.75), and the University of Idaho (398.92).
The Whitman men took first with a team time of 346.03 seconds. The University of British Columbia was second in 358.28. Albertson, Seattle University and Idaho filled the next three spots, separated by less than three seconds.
Also competing Sunday for the Missionary men were freshman Daniel Cook, who was eighth in 1:58.38, and twin brothers Ari and Aaron Stiassny, who also made the top 14 with times of 1:59.70 and 2:00.45.
With six victories each under their belts, the two Whitman teams will go for a clean sweep of the conference season next weekend at Idaho's Schweitzer Mountain. Slalom races are planned for Saturday and Sunday.
The U.S. Ski & Snowboard Association's west region championships will follow Feb. 21-23 at Idaho's Bogus Basin.
Saturday, February 9
Schweitzer Mountain, Idaho
Soft snow conditions slowed but couldn't stop the Whitman alpine ski teams from claiming their seventh consecutive Northwest Collegiate Ski Conference victories Saturday in slalom competition at Schweitzer Mountain near Sandpoint, Idaho.
"What we had today was very, very soft snow, probably softer than anything else we've seen elsewhere this season," Whitman coach Tom Olson said. "The snow was pretty much bottomless, although it held up okay once it was groomed."
Whitman junior Arne Backstrom rolled to a big victory, his fourth of the season, in the men's slalom. Backstrom was clocked in 1:34.94 for his two runs, beating Bryce Craig of Rocky Mountain College by more than two seconds. Located in Billings, Mont., Rocky Mountain College was one of several schools and teams from outside the Northwest Conference that competed in Saturday's event.
"It was great to have the extra competition," Olson said. "Rocky Mountain College is one of the schools we'll see in two weeks at the regional championships."
Whitman's Doug Whitfield, also a junior, was fourth in 1:38.34. Junior Russ Crandall, although he was well back in the start order, skied into 12th place with a time of 1:41.58. Freshman Daniel Cook also was headed to a top 15 finished before being disqualified for straddling a gate on his second run.
Others placing for the Whitman men were Aaron Stiassny, 16th, 1:42.83; Ari Stiassny, 26th, 1:45.15; and Jared Schoening, 27th, 1:45.17.
Whitman won the men's team scoring with a time of 296.08 seconds for its top three finishers. Rocky Mountain was second in 301.24, followed by the University of British Columbia in third place with a time of 306.34. Seattle University was fourth in 308.47 and Albertson College fifth in 309.64. There were eight other conference schools in the field.
In the women's slalom, Whitman junior Michelle Wall finished second overall -- first among the college racers -- in a time of 1:40.67. Sasha Warlo, a Pacific Northwest Ski Association competitor, took first in 1:40.31.
Whitman sophomore Julia Babilis placed fourth, third among the college racers, in 1:41.56. Lindsday Barksdale, another Missionary sophomore, was seventh in 1:42.66, while senior teammate Eva Cardova was ninth in 1:43.51. Dana Wong, also a senior, was 14th in 1:46.76. Carolyn Newcom, a first-year Missionary, placed 27th in 1:54.14.
"We had five women in the top 15," Olson said. "No other team even had two women in the top 15."
As might be expected, the Whitman women were big winners in the team scoring. Their first-place team score was 304.89 seconds, well ahead of the University of Oregon and its 327.10 second-place time. Rocky Mountain was third, Albertson fourth and British Columbia fifth.
"On paper, in black and white, it looks like we skied very well today, both men and women," Olson said. "From a coach's standpoint and the standpoint of the athletes, we know we can ski much better than we did today. The lack of gate training we've had for the past six weeks, because of the soft snow conditions throughout the region, is really starting to show. This was a race day, but it really was just a training day. The snow is soft here too, but at least we had a race crew to buff the course we were racing."
Sunday, February 10
Schweitzer Mountain, Idaho
After clinching their ninth consecutive conference titles a week ago, the Whitman alpine ski teams wrapped up undefeated seasons with a pair of slalom victories Sunday at Schweitzer Mountain near Sandpoint, Idaho.
"It's been a great conference season," Whitman alpine coach Tom Olson said. "Our teams made a bit of school history today in that this is the first time both alpine teams won eight events apiece to complete an undefeated season. No matter what the sport, 16-0 looks pretty good."
Last season, the Missionary men won eight times while the women were victorious in seven of eight races. Two years ago, the roles were reversed as the women won eight times and the men seven.
Arne Backstrom, a Whitman junior, won his second race of the weekend on Sunday, giving him five victories in eight conference events. He easily captured the individual conference championship with 180 points, finishing well ahead of teammate Doug Whitfield and his 109 season points.
In his two previous seasons, Backstrom was the runner-up in the battle for the individual title, finishing behind teammates in both cases. Two years ago it was Whitfield who took the title while Backstrom was second.
In fourth place after Sunday's first slalom run, Backstrom stormed back with a strong second run to win the event in a total time of 1:24.18. "Arne had a little trouble on his first run, but a lot of skiers from a lot of teams had trouble in the men's event," Olson said.
Whitfield fell near the end of his first run to drop from the competition. Daniel Cook, a Whitman freshman, placed 16th in 1:31.90, just ahead of junior teammate Aaron Stiassny, who was 17th in 1:31.98. Next in line for Whitman were Ari Stiassny, 24th, 1:35.11; Russ Crandall, 24th, 1:42.74; and Jared Schoening, 42nd, 1:47.30.
The Whitman men were first in the team scoring with a time of 268.06 seconds for their top three finishers. Central Oregon College was second in 276.06, followed by Rocky Mountain College in 281.09, Seattle University in 282.64, and Puget Sound in 284.33.
Rounding out the men's field, in order of finish, were the University of British Columbia, Albertson, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Gonzaga, Pacific Lutheran and Washington State.
In the women's slalom on Sunday, Whitman sophomore Michelle Wall also won for a second straight day, upping her season victory total to four. Her winning time was 1:30.83, beating a non-college race (Sasha Warlo of Spokane) by almost a second.
Whitman senior Eva Cardova was fourth overall, second among the college racers, in 1:33.02. Julia Babilis, a Missionary sophomore, was fifth overall and third among the collegians in 1:34.63.
Others placing for the Whitman women were Dana Wong, 13th, 1:38.36; Lindsay Barksdale, 14th, 1:38.38; and Carolyn Newcom, 28th, 1:47.99.
In the women's team scoring Sunday, Whitman was first in 278.48 seconds. Puget Sound was second in 292.75, followed by Albertson 298.64, Rocky Mountain College 306.66, and the University of Idaho 320.30.
By placing third among the college races in both weekend races, Babilis nailed down the women's individual conference title with 139 points. Babilis won just one race during the season, but she was a model of consistency throughout, placing second three times and never finishing lower than fourth.
Puget Sound's Larissa Felli finished second in the women's season point total with 120. Cardova was third with 115 points and Wall fourth with 106. Wall, last year's champion, sat out two events this season to ease chronic knee problems. Barksdale was fifth with 85 points and Wong seventh with 70. The top ten women in the season point totals earned First-Team, All-Northwest Collegiate Ski Conference honors.
Backstrom and Whitfield were two of five Missionaries to finish in the top ten in the men's season point standings. Crandall was fifth with 77 points, Cook was eighth with 55 points, and Aaron Stiassny took ninth with 41 points.
A sixth Whitman skier, Ari Stiasnny, placed 17th with 20 points to earn second-team all-conference honors.
Several Missionary skiers will leave early in the week to spend a few days at the Winter Olympics in Park City, Utah. "It's a nice break for them, and it's something that should serve to motivate and inspire them for the rest of our season."
The next competition for the Whitman alpine squads is the U.S. Collegiate Ski & Snowsport Association's West Region Championships, set for Feb. 21-24 at Idaho's Bogus Basin. The USCSA national championships are set for March 13-16 in Waterville Valley, New Hampshire.
The Whitman squads are among eight men's and eight women's teams that advance to the regional championships based on results from the conference season.
Schools advancing on the women's side, in addition to Whitman, are (in order of final standings) Puget Sound, Albertson, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Seattle, and the University of British Columbia.
Joining the Whitman men at regionals are Albertson, British Columbia, Washington, Seattle, Central Oregon College, Idaho, and Puget Sound.
As it was during its conference season, the Whitman women's alpine team was a dominant force in winning the giant slalom event as the U.S. Collegiate Ski & Snowboard Association's Western Region Championships got underway Friday at Bogus Basin near Boise, Idaho.
Senior Eva Cardova led the Missionary charge, edging sophomore teammate Lindsay Barksdale for first place. Cardova was first in a time of 1:25.79 seconds for her two runs down the hill. Barksdale was second in 1:25.94.
"It was great to see Eva do so well," Whitman alpine coach Tom Olson said. "She's been a key part of our team for four years now." Cardova placed second in the giant slalom at last year's regional championship.
Puget Sound's Larissa Felli took third in Friday's event in 1:26.47, edging Whitman sophomore Julia Babilis by four one-hundredths of a second. Dana Wong, a Whitman senior, tied Montana State University's Jamie Holts for fifth place with a time of 1:27.96.
"Finishing one, two, four and five at a regional championship is not bad," Olson said. "Being that dominant is something we normally do in a conference race, not at regionals."
Whitman exerted its dominance without using one of its top skiers, sophomore Michelle Wall. Bothered by a chronic knee condition, she will compete only in Sunday's slalom competition.
Also racing Friday for Whitman was freshman Carolyn Newcom, who placed 42nd in 1:38.18. The race drew nearly 80 skiers from 19 schools.
In the team scoring, Whitman was first with a time of 258.24 seconds for its top three finishers. Montana State was second more than six seconds back in second place, followed by Puget in third, Albertson in fourth and Rocky Mountain College in fifth. Filling spots six through eight were the universities of Idaho, Colorado-Boulder and Wyoming. Ft. Lewis College and the University of Washington rounded out the top 10.
Friday's race took place under warm conditions with temperatures reaching as high as 54 degrees on the 7,600- foot mountain.The regional championships continue Saturday with the men's giant slalom. The competition concludes Sunday with the men's and women's slalom events.
With junior Arne Backstrom placing first for a third consecutive year, the Whitman men's alpine ski team won the giant slalom event as the U.S. Collegiate Ski & Snowboard Association's Western Region Championships continued Saturday at Bogus Basin near Boise, Idaho.
Backstrom took first in a time of 92.90 seconds for his two runs down the hill. Bryce Craig of Montana's Rocky Mountain College was the runner-up in 94.67, followed by the Air Force Academy's Eric Svendsen in third in 95.15.
"Arne is amazingly consistent," Whitman alpine coach Tom Olson said. "We won the first run and was second on the second run. He just keeps rolling along."
Whitman junior Doug Whitfield, who won the second run, was fourth overall in 95.25. Also cracking the top 10 for the Missionaries were sophomore Russ Crandall, who was seventh in 95.81, and freshman Daniel Cook, who was tenth in 96.78. Less than seven-tenths of a second separated the skiers placing third through seventh.
Aaron Stiassny, a Whitman junior, finished in 97.29, placing 16th in a field of 85 racers. Stiassny's twin brother Ari, who suffered a bruised back in a training run fall earlier in the week, was held out of Saturday's race for precautionary reasons.
"All of the guys came through in a big way today," Olson said. "This was the toughest competition we've faced all season, by far, and the weather conditions made it that much tougher."
In the team scoring, Whitman was first with a time of 283.96 for its top three. The University of British Columbia was second in 289.78, followed by the University of Colorado-Boulder in 293.44, Rocky Mountain College in 294.73, and the Air Force Academy in 295.95.
A total of 17 schools competed. Placing sixth through tenth were Idaho, Colorado State, Montana State, Washington and Seattle.
Saturday's races took place despite limited visibility due to dense fog, snowfall and wind. "You couldn't see 10 feet in front of yourself, which is about one gate out on the course," Olson said. "We had 73 racers actually finish, which is surprising given the conditions."
The regional championships conclude Sunday at Bogus Basin with the men's and women's slalom events.
The Whitman men have won or shared the regional title for five consecutive years. The Missionary women have won three of the last four regional crowns.
Sunday was another dominant day on the slopes for Arne Backstrom, who won the slalom event and led the Whitman men's alpine ski team to the U.S. Collegiate Ski & Snowboard Association's Western Region title at Idaho's Bogus Basin.
Meanwhile, Whitman sophomore Michelle Wall won the women's slalom as the Missionary women claimed a regional title of their own on Sunday, even though they placed second by a razor-thin margin to Montana State in the slalom team scoring.
Backstrom, a junior who also won the men's giant slalom on Saturday, decimated the field on Sunday, beating his nearest competitor by more than two seconds. His winning time was 1:15.89 for his two runs, well ahead of runner-up Paul Boskovich of the University of British Columbia (UBC). Boskovich finished in 1:18.18.
"Arne gets more amazing all the time," Whitman alpine coach Tom Olson said. "He's won the regional giant slalom for three years in a row, and now he's won the regional slalom title in two of the last three years. He was fifth in the giant slalom last year, but he was also skiing at the time with a broken shoulder."
Doug Whitfield, a Whitman junior, placed third in Sunday's slalom in 1:19.36. Freshman Daniel Cook was 19th in a field of 80-plus skiers, finishing in 1:24.18.
Whitman's top three finishers gave the Missionaries a winning team time of 239.43 seconds. Colorado State took second place in 246.13. Other teams in the top five were the University of Colorado-Boulder 246.29, Montana State 253.43, and the Air Force Academy 253.50. A total of 17 schools competed.
By winning both the giant slalom and slalom events, the Whitman men's squad added to a long list of recent regional titles. The Missionary men have won or shared the last six regional crowns.
In the women's slalom on Sunday, Montana State placed three women in the top six and won the team scoring with a total of 265.68 seconds. In addition to Wall, who won the event in 1:26.69, Whitman got strong contributions from senior Eva Cardova, who placed fourth in 1:28.85, and sophomore Lindsay Barksdale, who was eighth in 1:30.27. Whitman's team score was 265.81 -- just 13 one-hundredths of a second behind Montana State.
Sunday's slalom outcome was a reversal of roles from the women's giant slalom on Friday, when Whitman was first in the team scoring and Montana State second. Both schools finished with three place points for the two events, but Whitman won the regional title based on a tie-breaker system based on individual place points. Whitman's top three finishers in each event accounted for 20 place points, 11 points ahead of Montana State. The Missionary women have now won or shared four of the last five regional titles.
Based on the regional results, both Whitman squads head to the USCSSA national championships as No. 1 seeds. Other men's teams advancing to nationals are Colorado State, Air Force Academy, Rocky Mountain College and UBC. Other national-qualifying teams on the women's side are Albertson, Rocky Mountain College, Puget Sound, and Ft. Lewis College.
While the Montana State women finished second in the regional championships, they will not advance to the USCSSA championships, slated for mid-March at New Hampshire's Waterville Valley. Montana State is not eligible, according to the USCSAA rules, because it also attempts to qualify for the NCAA national championships.
By winning the women's slalom on Sunday, Wall defended the individual title she won at last year's regional championships. Wall did not compete in the giant slalom on Friday, choosing to rest chronically sore knees. She was third in the giant slalom a year ago at regionals.
Two other Missionaries placed well in the women's slalom Sunday. Senior Dana Wong was 15th in 1:32.97 and sophomore Julia Babilis, after having to hike around a gate on her first run, recovered with a strong second run to place 21st in 1:37.55.
Also placing for the Whitman men on Sunday was junior Aaron Stiassny, who finished 29th in 1:26.61. Sophomore Russ Crandall lost a ski on his second run and did not finish.
"Despite not getting any scoring from two of our top skiers in Julia Babilis and Russ Crandall, our teams did extremely well," Olson said. "It shows the type of quality depth that we have."
"The course and weather conditions were tough again," Olson added. "It was a scary afternoon for a lot of teams, but our athletes stayed strong and held their own. They should be proud of what they accomplished the past few days. They showed a lot of strenghth and determination."
Both Backstrom in the men's competition and Cardova on the women's side also came home with individual alpine combined titles. After winning both men's events, Backstrom was a hands-down winner of his combined title. Cardova won the giant slalom and was fourth in the slalom, which was the top combination in the women's field.
Julia Babilis placed sixth in the giant slalom on Wednesday to lead the Whitman women's alpine team to a second-place showing as the U.S. Collegiate Ski & Snowsport Association's national championships got underway in Waterville Valley, New Hampshire.
Norway's Gro Kvinlog, skiing for perennial national champion Sierra Nevada College, won the race in 2:00.20 for her two runs down the hill. Two of her teammates, Pavla Raclavska of the Czech Republic and Eloise Bernard of France, placed second and third. A fourth SNC skier, Maria Kvopkova of Slovakia, was fifth.
Babilis, a Whitman sophomore from Ogden, Utah, finished her two runs in 2:07.29. Other than SNC skiers, the only other competitor to beat Babilis was Boston College's Lori Williams, who placed fourth in 2:06.25.
"It was a good, solid race for Julia," Whitman alpine coach Tom Olson said. "She trimmed some time off on her second run, and she was happy with that."
Rounding out Whitman's top three were two seniors Eva Cardova, who placed 11th in 2:08.72, and Dana Wong, who was 13th in 2:09.04. "It was their last collegiate giant slalom, and both Eva and Dana were pleased with how they did," Olson said.
Cardova, a native of Slovakia, placed 19th in the giant slalom at nationals last year, after having placed third and fifth in her first two seasons at Whitman. Wong, who missed last season while on foreign study, placed eighth and ninth in the giant slalom to cap her first two seasons.
Others placing for Whitman in Wednesday's giant slalom were two sophomores, Michelle Wall, who finished 16th in 2:10.14, and Lindsay Barksdale, who was 19th in 2:10.46.
Babilis, Cardova and Wong earned Second Team All-American honors. By placing sixth, Babilis just missed First-Team honors, which go to the top five in each alpine event.
Sierra Nevada was an easy winner in the team scoring with a total time of 370.99 seconds for its top three. With a team score of 386.15 seconds, Whitman edged both Boston College (387.40) and Brown University (389.07).
Smith College was fifth and Albertson College sixth. The University of Puget sound slipped into eighth place. A total of 19 schools were represented by about 100 competitors.
The women's alpine competition concludes Friday with the slalom event. The Whitman women have finished second to Sierra Nevada in the alpine combined scoring at each of the past four national championship events. With the exception of 1997, when Whitman pulled a rare upset to win the all-around title, Sierra Nevada has won every women's alpine combined championship since 1991.
As expected, the men's alpine team from Sierra Nevada College won the giant slalom event Thursday in the U.S. Collegiate Ski & Snowsport Association's national championships at Waterville Valley, New Hampshire.
The race for the next seven spots, however, was remarkably close. The Whitman men fared well in the scramble, placing third and losing out to runner-up St. Olaf College by less than seven-tenths of a second in the team scoring.
Whitman's top three -- Arne Backstrom, Doug Whitifield and Russ Crandall -- finished their two runs with a combined time of 409.78 seconds. St. Olaf's top trio was just a tad faster, finishing in 409.13.
Sierra Nevada used a strong second run to post a winning time of 400.81 seconds. After the first run, Sierra Nevada was little more than two seconds in front of St. Olaf's and about three seconds ahead of Whitman.
Teams placing fourth through eighth all finished with one second of another. The University of Massachusetts was fourth in 411.03, while Penn State was eighth in 411.99. Colby-Sawyer College was fifth, Boston College sixth and Lees McRae College seventh.
"It was incredible as to how many teams were packed so close together," Whitman alpine coach Tom Olson said. "We trailed Sierra Nevada by less than three seconds after the first run, which is as close as we've ever been to them. That was a great first run for our guys."
"It's too bad we didn't slip into second place, but I thought we competed like champions and skied about as well as we can, given the circumstances," Olson said. "It warmed up some today, which helped us, but the snow conditions here in the East have been very different from the soft snow we had all season back home."
About 110 skiers started the race, representing 18 schools.
Backstrom, a junior, had Whitman's best finish, placing sixth in 2:14.94, less than three-tenths of a second behind the University of British Columbia's Paul Boskovich. Whitfield, also a junior, placed 10th in 2:15.70. Crandall was 31st in 2:19.14. A year ago at nationals, Backstrom placed 19th and Whitfield 25th in the giant slalom.
Both Backstrom and Whitfield earned Second Team All-American honors for the giant slalom by placing in the top 15. The top five finishers in each alpine event make the First Team.
Austria's Martin Kroisleitner, skiing for Sierra Nevada, won the race for a second straight year. His time was 2:11.89, about one-half second faster than St. Olaf's Joachim Rasmusen of Norway. France's Ted Piccard, who also skies for Sierra Nevada, took third in 2:13.48.
Also placing for Whitman were freshman Daniel Cook, who was 36th in 2:20.07, and junior Aaron Stiassny, who was 41st in 2:21.47.
Shaking off chronic knee problems, Whitman sophomore Michelle Wall placed sixth in the women's slalom on Friday, leading the Missionaries to a third-place finish in the team scoring at the U.S. Collegiate Ski & Snowboard Association's national championships in Waterville Valley, New Hampshire.
Perennial women's champion Sierra Nevada College placed skiers in four of the top five individual spots to easily win the slalom team title. Sierra Nevada's top three finishers had a combined time of 269.82. Boston College took second with a 281.13 team time with Whitman placing third in 284.29. Brown University was fourth and the University of Massachusetts fifth.
By winning both the giant slalom and slalom events, Sierra Nevada captured its fifth consecutive alpine combined women's title. Whitman and Boston College, after trading the second and third spots in the two events, finished in a dead heat for second place in the alpine combined. The tie-breaker favored Whitman, however, which means the Missionaries have now placed second to Sierra Nevada in each of the past five years.
With the exception of 1997, when Whitman was the upset winner of the alpine combined title, Sierra Nevada has won every women's championship since 1991.
Wall's sixth-place time was 1:34.14. Teammate Julia Babilis, also a sophomore, placed eighth in 1:34.61. Despite the lingering effects of a bad back, Whitman senior Eva Cardova closed out her collegiate career by placing 12th in 1:35.58. By placing in the top 15, all three Whitman skiers earned Second Team All-American honors. They also earned Second Team honors for individual alpine combined scoring, which is based on results from both the slalom and giant slalom.
Also skiing for Whitman in Friday's slalom were senior Dana Wong, who finished 28th in 1:40.31, and sophomore Lindsay Barksdale, who was 29th in 1:40.40.
"It was great to see Michelle and Eva hold themselves together from a physical standpoint and do well," Whitman alpine coach Tom Olson said. "It was Eva's last race, and even though Michelle is a sophomore, we're not at all sure she will ski any longer. Her knees are in very bad shape."
The women's alpine competition ended with three Missionaries making Academic All-American teams. Wong was named to the Second Team, while Wall and Carolyn Newcom recieved Honorable Mention.
Friday's weather was anything but cooperative as cold rain turned to freezing rain as the day progressed. "There was some fog and impaired vision," Olson said. "But it didn't seem to affect our women too much. They were strong and solid all day."
Whitman's performance in the slalom also allowed the Missionaries to claim their eighth consecutive women's national 4-Way Award, which goes to the school scoring the most points in two alpine and two cross country events.
The Whitman women claimed this year's President's Award for 4-Way Performance with 24 points. Wyoming was second with 105 points, Albertson third with 114, and Cornell fourth with 147.
Meanwhile, Whitman is poised to claim its seventh men's 4-Way title in the past eight years. The men's alpine slalom is set for Saturday.
Unlike two days earlier, when the Whitman's alpine team survived a talented yet mad scramble to place second in the giant slalom, the Missionaries slipped to sixth place in Saturday's slalom event as the U.S. Collegiate Ski & Snowboard Association's national championships concluded at Waterville Valley, New Hampshire.
The times separating the top several places wasn't quite as razor-thin on Saturday as they were on Thursday, but there wasn't much difference between Whitman in sixth and Plymouth State College in second.
As expected, Sierra Nevada College and its roster of mostly European World Cup skiers won the event with a time of 264.79 seconds. Plymouth State was the runner-up with a time of 274.64 for its top three finishers. Less than six seconds separated from Plymouth State and the next four teams.
Colby-Sawyer College placed third in 277.88, St. Olaf College was fourth in 278.01, and Lees McRae College (279.68) edged Whitman (280.51) for the fifth spot. The next four schools in the standings -- University of Massachusetts, Clarkson, University of British Columbia, and Rocky Moutain College -- were bunched in a six-second timeframe behind Whitman.
"The talent level and degree of competition in men's alpine are nothing short of amazing," Whitman alpine coach Tom Olson said. "Our guys handled the pressure and skied well, but they know they can ski faster. They know they have the talent to have placed in the top three, but it just didn't work out for us this time."
By finishing sixth in Saturday's slalom, the Whitman men improved one spot from last year's seventh-place showing. "You could see how much stronger our men's team was this year at nationals," Olson said.
In the men's alpine combined scoring, Sierra Nevada won both the giant slalom and slalom events to take the team title with two place points. St. Olaf was second with six points and Colby-Sawyer took third with eight points, edging Whitman by a single point. By placing fourth in the alpine combined, the Missionaries finished one spot higher than a year ago.
Austrian Martin Kroisleitner, who skies for Sierra Nevada, won Saturday's slalom with a time of 1:26.35 for this two runs. One of his teammates, Rune Nielsen of Norway, was second in 1:26.35.
Arne Backstrom, a Whitman junior, placed tenth in 1:31.00, despite having stumbled out of the starting gate on his first run. Whitman's Doug Whitfield, also a junior, placed 13th in 1:32.95. Freshman Daniel Cook provided the Missionaries with their third team score, placing 33rd in 1:36.56. Sophomore Russ Crandall was right on his heels, finishing 34th in 1:36.75. Junior Aaron Stiassny was 38th in 1:37.50.
By placing in the top 15, both Backstrom and Whitfield earned Second Team All-American honors for the slalom. They also earned Second Team honors for individual alpine combined scoring, which is based on results from both the slalom and giant slalom.
Whitfield also earned a spot on the Second Team Academic All- American team.
"The consistency our alpine skiers showed at nationals this year was amazing," Olson said. "Our men and women made 20 runs in their slalom and giant slalom events this week, and they finished all 20. I'd be surprised if any other school can say that."
The men's slalom Saturday included 19 teams and more than 110 individual skiers.
Whitman's sixth-place in the men's slalom helped the Missionaries nail down the national President's Award for 4-Way Performance, which is based on combined results from two alpine and two cross country events. Whitman won the men's award with 28 points while Clarkson University was second with 59 points. The University of Wyoming was third with 114 points, followed by Worcester Polytechnic Institute with 152.
Whitman has now won the men's 4-Way award in seven of the past eight years. The Missionary women wrapped up their eighth consecutive 4-Way award on Friday.