Skiers Remain In Lead At CU Invitational

January 19, 2008 | Skiing

CU Ski Invitational Results (Day 3)

By: David Plati, Assistant AD/Sports Information

WINTER PARK - The University of Colorado ski team added, albeit slightly, to its overall lead as the Buffs held serve so-to-speak as the 14th Annual Laura Sharpe Flood Memorial/CU Invitational resumed here Saturday at the Snow Mountain Ranch Nordic Center.

Colorado led the competition by 19 points after the alpine races two weeks ago in Steamboat Springs, and with a second place overall finish in Saturday's interval freestyle Nordic races held its position, as the Buffs lead with 407 points. That added one point to the CU lead, as Denver remained in second with 387, with Utah moving into third (370), ahead of New Mexico (354) and Nevada (341).

Senior Maria Grevsgaard won for the third time in as many races this winter, and in the process tied the school record for the most career wins by a female Nordic skier with 11. She cruised for the third straight time as well, this time completing the 5-kilometer course in 14:50.5, a full 31 seconds ahead of Denver's Annelise Bailly, who was timed in 15;21.4.

She is now tied for fourth in all-time overall career wins, as she and teammate Lucie Zikova (12 alpine wins) are chasing the all-time leader, Per Kare Jakobsen. He captured 13 cross country events from 1988-90.

ALL-TIME INDIVIDUAL WINS BY CU SKIERS

13 Per Kare Jakobsen, 1988-90 (9 FS/XC, 4 CL)

12 John Skajem, 1985-87 (8 SL, 4 GS)

12 Lucie Zikova, 2005-08 (9 SL, 3 GS)

11 Anette Skjolden, 1991-93 (7 CL, 4 FS)

11 Line Selnes, 1998 (6 FS, 5 CL)

11 Maria Grevsgaard, 2006-08 (7 CL, 4 FS)

10 Bjorn Svensson, 1990-93 (6 FS, 4 CL)

It is the second time in her career she has won three straight races, matching a similar feat last year, and is the first Colorado skier to win the first three races in Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Ski Association (RMISA) competition since 1999, when both Ove Erik Tronvoll (the first five cross country races) and Linda Wikstrom (three alpine events) did so. The school record for the most consecutive wins is eight, by Nordic skier Line Selnes in 1998, her only year in the CU program.

Grevsgaard had good support, as the CU women won the race with 72 points, topping Montana State and Utah by nine. Junior Lenka Palanova has returned to the form of her freshman season and finished fifth in 15:50.5, with senior Mia Gaw taking 16th in 16:26.2. Freshman Karoline Borgnes was right behind her in 17th in 16:31.2, with senior Jenny Hamilton 19th (16:56.8) and sophomore Kristin Ronnestrand 23rd (17:04.1). Sophomore Maisha Goodpaster rounded out the Buffalo women, as he was 42nd in 20:29.3.

In the men's 10-kilometer freestyle race, Denver's Rene Reisshauer won in a 26:40.6 time, good for a comfortable win over Alaska's Raphael Wunderle, who took runner-up honors in 26:47.2. Alaska-Anchorage and Montana State tied for the team lead with 71 points (CU was fifth with 57), and the Bobcats edged the Buffs, 134-129, overall for points on the day.

The CU men had its top three finishers just outside the top 10, as freshman Jesper Ostensen led the way with an 11th place finish in 28:08.1, while senior Kit Richmond and junior Karl Nygren tied for 12th in 28:09.2. Sophomores Joshua Smith (15th, 28:31.1) and Joaquin Goodpaster (27th, 29:27.4) were CU's other official finishers; sophomore Patrick Neel actually posted a fifth place finish (27:32.4), but he transferred to CU from Western State without an official release from the Mountaineers, thus he can't officially ski for the Buffs until 2009.

Colorado also was without the services of one of its top Nordic performers, as sophomore Matt Gelso has been sick and remained in Boulder. If he feels up to it Sunday morning, he may join his teammates in Winter Park.

"On the men's side, we certainly hoped for and expected better, but I think with all the guys living in close quarters, we are a little off our ?A' game," CU Nordic coordinator Bruce Cranmer said. "But that's the reality of being a ski racer, not being able to compete at your best in distance sports. Sickness affects this sport every year, and since it is one of endurance, some times you have to take your lumps. I just hope this is it and we can avoid it the rest of the season.

"As for the women, we were fairly solid and I thought it was a pretty good performance," Cranmer said. "Obviously Maria is skiing great and we hope it just continues. She's definitely on her ?A' game and keeps on rolling. Lenka's obviously in the ball park, and Karoline with the cold didn't have the greatest conditions for her technique and style. Mia came through and overall we had five in the top 19.

"But we at least gained a point on the field, which kind of surprised me," he continued. "Everyone has some stuff going on with sickness, so as it turned out, we all wound up being right around each other in points scored today. We can't assume that will be the case tomorrow, and we're not counting on Matt being able to join us. It's a nice cushion (the 20-point lead), but by no means is one that can't be wiped out if we don't ski well."

It was about 10 degrees for the races with the wind chill hovering around 2, as the wind was not a factor though started gusting to 35 miles per hour just after the last skier crossed the finish line. It's the highest elevation for a Nordic meet this season, as Snow Mountain Ranch is about 8,500 feet above sea level.

The invitational will conclude Sunday with the Nordic classical races, with the women's 10K at 9:30 a.m., followed by the men's 15K at 11 a.m.

Colorado Invitational Team Scores-1. Colorado 407; 2. Denver 387; 3. Utah 370; 4. New Mexico 354; 5. Nevada 341; 6. Alaska-Anchorage 309; 7. Montana State 300; 8. Western State 152; 9. Whitman 111; 10. Wyoming 22.