Skiers Open RMISA Championships With GS Races

ANCHORAGE, Alaska—The Colorado Buffaloes Ski Team opened the 74th Annual RMISA Championships with giant slalom races here at Alyeska Resort, and while the team results leave a little to be desired, the deeper story of NCAA Qualification had some bright spots here Wednesday.

Louis Fausa had a spectacular race that saw him pick up his first career podium appearance, taking third place and shoring up his qualification. He started the race 15th and threw down the second fastest first run and after the 10th fastest second run, he held on to that podium by just one-hundredth of a second.

With the finish, Fausa moved up 11th to eighth on the GS seeding list, meaning he went from starting 22nd to now starting 16th early next month in Lake Placid. He also moved up from the 16th (out of 17) overall seed to a safer position in 12th.

Alex Birkner was the only other top 20 finisher for the Buffs in 20th position. Jack Reich finished 28th as the Buffs third team scorer while Sebastian Kohlhofer finished 35th and Chase Seymour 36th.

Filip Forejtek skied for the first time in four races but did not finish his first run, and Jacob Dilling is not with the Buffs in Alaska. Those two already safely qualified for the NCAA Championships and in fact both will be in the top seed for the GS race there, meaning they will start somewhere in the top 10 which will be a random draw situation.

On the women's side, one day after Elena Exenberger's clutch sixth place finish moved her into a qualification spot, she fell back to the first skier out after not finishing Wednesday's race. Her falling out had less to do with her own DNF than other skiers performing well and moving ahead of her in the complicated qualification system.

Kaitlyn Harsch was the sole finisher for the Buffs and she put her second best finish of the season (and third best of her career) down taking 17th place, improving her seed a few spots, which is key for a better starting position at NCAAs.

With two slalom races remaining, there are countless scenarios two which both Exenberger and Harsch qualify for NCAAs and enable the Buffs to send a full 12-skier team to NCAAs, but the finishes the next two days for those two will be key. Emma Hammergaard is safely qualified and she will be in the top seed and start in the top 10 at NCAAs in GS, and she has a good opportunity to improve her slalom seed the next two days, as well.

Hammergaard, Exenberger and Cleo Braun unfortunately did not finish the race, giving the Buffs just 19 points in the race and putting the Buffs into sixth place at the Championships.

CU wasn't the only traditional power that struggled in the team standings, as Westminster College won both races and sits in the lead with 181 points, 37 ahead of Montana State. Denver (135), Utah (123) and host Alaska Anchorage (114) are ahead of the Buffs total of 79.

WHAT IT MEANS:

When your goal is to win national championships, doing well as a team at the RMISA Championships becomes second to the overarching goals associated with the NCAA Championships. The top goal right now is for the Buffs to qualify a full team and improve seeding for better starting positions at the NCAA Championships, which are so drastically different than regular season meets that it's impossible to base your performance there on previous competitions.

UP NEXT:

Alpine teams stay in the spotlight Thursday with the first slalom races in Alaska. These races will be part of the UAA Invitational and be the final two races for that meet. Friday will see another slalom race on the alpine side as part of the RMISA Championships and the Nordic teams will begin the first of two days of racing as part of the league championships, as well.

QUALIFICATION NOTES:

Fausa's podium moved him up from 11th with 49 points to eighth with 61, a huge jump in the final race of the season. He would've fallen to 12th had he not improved his point total, which means moving from starting 24th in the GS race at NCAAs up to 16th. Eight critical spots that could equal huge points there.
Filip Forejtek's DNF almost hurt worse due to NCAA Qualification, as two skiers moved ahead of him with high finishes, but Forejtek held on to his No. 5 seed in GS and remains in the top seed at NCAAs, which means a randomized top 10 starting position.
Jacob Dilling isn't in Alaska, but skiers were not able to catch him in second place, so he remains in the top seed, as well. CU could very likely be the only RMISA team at NCAAs with two skiers in the top seed.
Emma Hammergaard, like Forejtek, could've been hurt worse by her DNF today, but she also held on to the No. 5 GS seed, meaning a top 10 starting position at NCAAs.
Kaitlyn Harsch picking up her two best GS finishes in the last two races bodes well for the NCAA Championships. As is stands now, she is the No. 16 seed in (out of 17 for the RMISA), and her qualification and strength is on the slalom side, but should she hold onto that seed, she likely moved up four to eight spots in the GS race with her performance over the last two days.
Elena Exenberger was gunning for another top 10 finish like she got on Tuesday, and had she accomplished that feat, would be safely qualified for the NCAAs.

RMISA CHAMPIONSHIPS (Thru 2 of 8 Races): 1. Westminster 181; 2. Montana State 144; 3. Denver 135; 4. Utah 123; 5. Alaska Anchorage 114; 6. Colorado 79; 7. Nevada 71; 8. Colorado Mountain 57.

WOMEN'S GIANT SLALOM (25 collegiate finishers): 1. Sara Rask, DU, 1:40.63; 2. Lana Zbasnik, WMC, 1:41.05; 3. Clair Timmermann, UU, 1:41.27; 4. Justine Lamontagne, MSU, 1:41.29; 5. Denise Dingsleder, WMC, 1:41.43; 6. Evelina Fredricsson, WMC, 1:41.80; 7. Kristiane Bekkestad, MSU, 1:42.19; 8. Giulia Tintorri, WMC, 1:42.44; 9. Hannah Saethereng, WMC, 1:43.16; 10. Gabriella Holm, MSU, 1:43.34. CU Finisher: 17. Kaitlyn Harsch, 1:44.96. Did Not Finish First Run: Elena Exenberger, Cleo Braun. Did Not Finish Second Run: Emma Hammergaard.

MEN'S GIANT SLALOM (40 collegiate finishers): 1. Leon Nikic, UAA, 1:34.59; 2. Jeremie Lagier, WMC, 1:34.99; 3. Louia Fausa, CU, 1:35.21; 4. Francisco Galdiolo, WMC, 1:35.22; 5. Wilhelm Normannseth, UU, 1:35.26; 6. Gianluca Boehm, MSU, 1:35.28; 7. Gustav Vollo, UU, 1:35.45; 8. Thomas Hoffman, DU, 1:35.46; 9. Bjorn Brudevoll, UU, 1:35.46; 10. Isak Staurset, MSU, 1:35.58. Other CU Finishers: 20. Alex Birkner, 1:36.58; 28. Jack Reich, 1:37.12; 35. Sebastian Kohlhofer, 1:39.68; 36. Chase Seymour, 1:40.00. Did Not Finish First Run: Filip Forejtek.

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Players Mentioned

Alex Birkner

Cleo Braun

Jacob Dilling

Elena Exenberger

Louis Fausa

Filip Forejtek

Emma Hammergaard

Kaitlyn Harsch

Sebastian Kohlhofer

Jack Reich

Chase Seymour