The CU ski team took care of business on Saturday.
The No. 2 Buffs cut a two-and-a-half point deficit against Utah to win the Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Ski Association Championships in Park City, Utah.
The Buffs also qualified for the NCAA Championship set to take place March 9-12.
“It is a big deal,” said Colorado Head Coach Richard Rokos. “In the first place, it’s a good confidence builder and everybody put a great deal of effort. It’s honorable to win the regional championship, especially knowing the competition will be close to what it will be at the NCAA’s.”
The women’s giant slalom was cancelled due to poor visibility, and according to RMISA rules, the races counterpart, women’s slalom, would count for double. This ruling benefitted the Buffs, who had outscored the Utes 103-78 in the slalom.
Junior Eliska Hajkova became the first skier since 2008 to sweep the Nordic races at the championship. She won the 15-kilometer race in 56:11.2, after being in third after the 5km split.
CU had two other scorers in the in the women’s race. Joanne Reid finished in 10th with a time of 58:40.4 and Alexa Turzian’s time of 58:43.0 was good enough for 11th.
In the men’s 20km classic, junior Ian Mallams finished in fourth (1:06:52.0), freshman Andreas Hoye finished in seventh with a time of 1:08:11.2, and senior Patrick Neel came in 14th with a time of 1:10:01.5.
The Buffs also had some success in the Men’s slalom, with three top 10 finishes. Senior Gabriel Rivas finished third, clocking in at 1:52.26. Sophomore Max Lamb matched his best finish at CU, coming in fifth with a time 1:53.38. Freshman Andreas Haug, who was voted RMISA Alpine men’s MVP, came in ninth with a time of 1:53.81.
The Buffs will train for a week before heading to Stowe, Vermont for the NCAA Championships. They will look to capture their 18th national championship, and their first since 2006.
Contact Sports Editor Mark McNeillie at Mark.mcneillie@colorado.edu.
