Buffs Take Second In NCAA West Regional

WINTER PARK - The University of Colorado ski team finished second here Monday in the NCAA West Regional, as Utah caught and passed the Buffaloes to claim the title. It marked the 11th straight year that the Buffs finished first or second in the regional, a number that includes six wins.

The Utes, in third place at the midway point, had three top 10 finishers in all four disciplines Monday to rack up 314 points on the day for a total of 581, good enough to best CU's 563. Three-time defending NCAA Champion Denver, the leader entering the day by a half point over the Buffs, finished third with 541.5, while New Mexico was a distant fourth with 439.

The Buffs had finished fourth in nordic points on Sunday, but rallied to score the second most in the classical races as the men won overall as the women took second. Freshman Henrik Hoye, overcoming a stomach virus, finished second in the men's 15k in 46:11.3, and though well behind Alaska's Tobias Schwoerer who won in 45:21.8, Hoye showed marked improvement from a day earlier, when he finished 11th in the freestyle.

Hoye led a 2-3-9 finish in the race for the Buffaloes, as fellow frosh Erling Christiansen was right behind him in 46:12.7, while senior Norbert Pelc was ninth in 46:58.6.

The CU women also placed three in the top 10, led by senior Claire Critchley who finished fourth in 34:11.8. A pair of sophomores were next for the Buffs, as Jana Rehemaa was sixth in 34:43.7 and Muriel Huberli 10th in 35:06.1. Utah's Katrin Smigun made it a clean sweep in the west, as her victory in 32:17.4 was her 10th win in as many races. She become the first to sweep every race in the west since 1998, when CU's Line Selnes accomplished the rare feat.

After the nordic classical races, CU held an 18-point lead over the Utes, with DU falling 29 points back. But the Buff lead was precarious, as despite a solid morning showing in the men's giant slalom, CU's top female skier, junior Mia Cullman, did not finish her first run and several Buffs were down the line for the afternoon run. When the smoke cleared, the CU men had three finishers in the top six, but the women had just one in the top 13, the first time all year the Buff ladies didn't have at least two in the top 10. That paved the way for Utah to overtake the Buffs and snare the win.

In the men's giant slalom, senior Jed Schuetze finished fifth with a two-run time of 2:01.36, with two Buffaloes tying for sixth in 2:01.51, frosh Brad Hogan and sophomore Tyler Shepherd. Denver's David Lamb won in 2:00.10, as he blistered the course in the morning in 1:01.85 and was almost a full second ahead entering the afternoon.

With Cullman out, senior Tove Pashkowski, second after the morning run, skied a bit conservatively for the team in the afternoon to secure a top 10 finish, doing so by nabbing eighth in 2:08.40. But CU's next finisher was all the way down in 14th, freshman Erika Hogan (2:09.98), with the third scorer, frosh Amy Beresford finishing last (32nd), as she fell in the morning but hiked back up the hill to be eligible to score. Denver's Sophie Ormond made it a regional sweep, as she won the GS in 2:05.07 to go wither her slalom win the day before.

"We're disappointed we didn't win, but we've positioned ourselves in good shape for the NCAA Championships," CU head coach Richard Rokos said. "Cross country had a good comeback today, and the men's alpine team again skied strong. It was just one of those days for the ladies, nothing to worry about, as they are as deep as any team in the nation. We'll do some more training at Eldora and then head to New Hampshire this weekend to get acclimated to the eastern snow. That's always a challenge for the teams from the west."

CU was going for a second straight regional title, and its fourth in the last five years, but the Utah rally squelched that attempt. Still, CU has enjoyed success in this meet in preparing for the national championships, in which the Buffs hope to better their runner-up finish of a year ago.

Colorado has more than qualified a full team for the NCAA Championships, and the coaches must now decide with 12 skiers to take to next week's title meet. "We have a tough choice or two ahead of us," Rokos said, "but it's just as important for those nordic skiers who are sick to get well in time for the trip east."

Next up are the NCAA Championships, set for March 5-8 in Lyme, N.H.

REMAINING STORY TO COME

NCAA West Regional Team Scores

1. Utah............... 581
2. Colorado........... 563
3. Denver............. 541.5
4. New Mexico......... 439
5. Alaska-Anchorage... 413.5
6. Nevada............. 389
7. Western State...... 298
8. Whitman College.... 232
9. Montana State...... 134

Men's Giant Slalom--1. David Lamb, DU, 2:00.10; 2. Dominik Schweiger, DU, 2:00.22; 3. Benjamin Thornhill, Utah, 2:01.15; 4. Pierre Olsson, Utah, 2:01.18; 5. Jed Schuetze, CU, 2:01.36; 6. Brad Hogan, CU, and Tyler Shepherd, CU, 2:01.51; 8. Ben Brown, WSC, 2:01.94; 9. Christian Jensen, UNM, 2:01.99; 10. Jernej Bukovec, Utah, 2:02.02. Other CU Finishers: 14. Fritz Ernemann, 2:03.08; 18. Michael Read, 2:05.47; 19. Tahir Bisic, 2:06.04.

Women's Giant Slalom--1. Sophie Ormond, DU, 2:05.07; 2. Rowena Bright, Utah, 2:06.05; 3. Caroline Schicht, UNM, 2:07.22; 4. Petra Svet, Utah, 2:07.24; 5. Quincy Young, UN, 2:07.59; 6. Lina Johansson, Utah, 2:07.65; 7. Jennifer Delich, UNM, 2:08.07; 8. Tove Pashkowski, CU, 2:08.40; 9. Alexandra Munteanu, MSU, 2:08.51; 10. Elisha Stephens, Utah, 2:09.19. Other CU Finishers: 14. Erika Hogan, 2:09.98; 24. Sarah Fischer, 2:16.71; 32. Amy Beresford, 2:40.61. Did Not Finish-Mia Cullman (first run), Erin McEachren (second run).

Men's 15K Classical--1. Tobias Schwoerer, UAA, 45:21.8; 2. Henrik Hoye, CU, 46:11.3; 3. Erling Christiansen, CU, 46:12.7; 4. Jess Kiesel, Utah, 46:26.6; 5. Hakon Johansen, DU, 46:47.8; 6. Ryan Quinn, Utah, 46:57.0; 7. Zach Violett, UAA, 46:57.7; 8. Zack Simons, Utah, 46:57.8; 9. Norbert Pelc, CU, 46:58.6; 10. Eric Strabel, UAA, 47:29.0. Other CU Finishers: 16. Josh Smullin, 48:49.4, 23. Nick Sterling, 51:07.6.

Women's 10K Classical--1. Katrin Smigun, Utah, 32:17.4; 2. Sara Svendsen, Utah, 33:51.4; 3. Kristina Strandberg, UNM, 34:03.8; 4. Claire Critchley, CU, 34:11.8; 5. Mandy Kampf, UAA, 34:30.6; 6. Jana Rehemaa, CU, 34:43.7; 7. Tara Hamilton, DU, 34:46.9;. 8. Barbro Hatlevik, Utah, 35:03.5; 9. Martina Stursova, UNM, 35:05.2; 10. Muriele Huberli, CU, 35:06.1. Other CU Finisher: 21. Brooke Rygg, 38:02.8.