Skiers Finish Competition On East Coast At Nationals & Nor-Ams

LAKE PLACID, N.Y. -- Several members of the University of Colorado ski team hit the slopes on the east coast shortly after the NCAA Championships here at Whiteface Mountain at the United States Alpine National Championships this past week. CU's Katie Hartman also competed in the final event of the Nor-Am Cup season at Waterville Valley, N.H., just prior to the start of the U.S. Championships.

Freshman Erika Ghent and junior Gabriel Rivas both earned top 10 finishes at Nationals, with Rivas earning an eighth place finish in the giant slalom Monday and Ghent earning a 10th place finish in the giant slalom on Tuesday. Rivas also disqualified in the first run of the slalom races on Sunday, while Ghent earned a 20th place finish in the slalom on Sunday and did not finish her first run of the Super G race on Saturday.

Spencer Nelson, Stefan Hughes and Taggart Spenst also competed on the men's side along with Hartman on the women's side at Nationals. Hartman took 14th in the Super G and did not finish her first run in both the giant slalom and slalom races. Nelson took 24th in the slalom, 26th in the giant slalom and 50th in the Super G, while Hughes took 44th in the giant slalom and Spenst had DNF's in the giant slalom, slalom and Super G.

In the final Nor-Am Cup race of the season last Wednesday, Hartman took 11th in the giant slalom before not finishing the slalom the following day. In the final Nor-Am Cup standings, Hartman was ninth overall and placed fifth in the Super G and ninth in both the giant slalom and super combined competitions. Ghent did not race at Waterville Valley, but finished 25th overall in the final Cup standings, including 12th in the giant slalom, 16th in the super combined and 19th in the slalom.

The Buffs finished the 2010 season earlier this month by finishing runner-up at the NCAA Championships.