SKIING RANKED SECOND IN PRESEASON POLL

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BOULDER, Colo. - With 167-points and four first-place votes, the University of Colorado's ski team is the No. 2 team in the nation in the 2004 Ski Racing NCAA Coaches' Preseason Poll, and trail defending national champion Utah (176) in the rankings by a slim nine points.

While the gap is tight between Utah and Colorado, Denver is a distant third with 140 points, followed by Vermont (137), the highest ranked team from the east, New Mexico (132), Nevada (75), Dartmouth (72), Alaska-Anchorage (60), Middlebury (58) and New Hampshire (13). Only 16 schools sponsor skiing.

The Buffs' return 16 letterwinners and All-Americans Mia Cullman, Jana Rehemaa, Erling Christiansen, Brad Hogan and Henrick Hoye from last year's narrow 4.5 point third place finish behind NCAA Championship spoiler Vermont who finished second behind Utah.

While Utah remains a solid threat to repeat the team title, the Utes will have some making up to do with the loss of a half dozen letterwinners, including Jana Rehemaa's cousin Katrin Smigun, who swept both women's nordic races last year.

Denver had an off-championship in New Hampshire last season with a fifth place finish, and return eight letterwinners from those championships with something to prove. Last year's championship surprise, Vermont was the national runner up without fielding a complete team and is the highest preseason ranked team from the east, and is followed by New Mexico (fourth at NCAAs last year) and Nevada, host of the '04 championships.

The Buffs open the 2004 season this weekend when the alpine skiers compete in the first half of the Utah Invitational, Jan. 11-12 in Park City, Utah. Both the alpine and Nordic teams will be at the Nevada Invitational (Jan. 15-16) before the nordic skiers complete the Utah Invitational Jan. 23-24 at Soldier Hollow.