Alpine skiing finishes inside top three

 

The Spartan skiers were eager to get on the slopes after this unseasonably warm winter. After their first meet at Okemo Mountain in Ludlow, Vermont being postponed due to weather, both the men’s and women’s teams have made the podium in slalom and giant slalom in their last two meets.

Spartan Contributor

Men

The Spartans finished their first day of competition at Blackwater Ski Area in Andover, New Hampshire, posting a third place finish in the slalom event with a total time of 299.07 seconds. Matt Couture led the way posting the fastest run of the day with a time of 1:37:17 with two other Spartans finishing in the top 15. Tyler Smith finished in ninth and Christopher Yopp in fifteenth. On the second day at Blackwater the Spartans claimed a third place finish once again in the slalom event with a total time of 305.98 and finished just two seconds behind first place finisher Clarkson. Couture was the top finisher for the Spartans with a fourth place finish overall. Tyler Smith posted a time just behind Couture to finish in fifth.  

The Spartans took their momentum into the next weekend at West Mountain in Queensbury, New York. They claimed the top spot in the giant slalom event with an overall time of 6:55:08, less than a quarter of a second faster that second place Babson, who posted a time of 6:55:29. Couture finished in first place, grabbing his second victory of the season. On the second day of skiing at West Mountain, the Spartans finished in four position overall in the slalom event. Connor Kelly was the top Castleton finisher in seventh place while Erick Robicsek finished in 11th place.

Spartan Contributor

Women

The Spartans took second place on both days of the slalom event at Blackwater Ski Area. The Spartans finished 11 seconds behind winner, Brown, on both days with an overall time of 329.24 on the first day and 331.17 on the second day. Three Spartans finished in the top 15 in the first race, including two freshmen. Anna-Julia Storch posted a time of 1:47:22, claiming third place while Linn Ljungemo finished in eleventh and senior Simona Croccolo in fourteenth. The three improved on their previous performances the following day. Ljungemo and Storch finished less than a second of each other and sixth and seventh respectively while Croccolo claimed twelfth place.

Freshmen duo Storch and Ljungemo continued to impress the following weekend helping Castleton take second place in giant slalom at West Mountain. Storch took third place with a time of 1:47:34 while Ljungemo was hot on her heels in fourth place, turning in a time of 1:47:43. On day two at West Mountain the Spartans grabbed their fourth straight second place finish of the season. Ljungemo and Storch put up top ten performances as they continued to lead the way for Castleton while Croccolo finished just outside the top ten in 11th.

The Spartans will travel to Whiteface in Lake Placid, New York  this weekend to compete in back-to-back days of the slalom event.

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