STEAMBOAT SPRINGS — The University of Colorado ski team once again used a balance attack, as 12 top 10 finishes including seven in the top five and another victory from senior Matt Gelso in cross country propelled the Buffaloes to Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Ski Association (RMISA) and NCAA West Regional titles.
The No. 2-ranked Buffaloes amassed 902 points, scoring at least 100 in seven of the eight disciplines, easily outdistancing second place Alaska-Anchorage.
Colorado has now won 24 RMISA championships, 10 under current head coach Richard Rokos; the breakdown includes 11 men’s, 11 coed and two women’s championships under the RMISA banner. But just as if not more important, the Buffaloes qualified a full 12-skier team for next month’s NCAA Championships.
“Mission accomplished,” Rokos said. “We qualified a full team and are looking forward to competition right back here in two weeks on the same courses. Today’s slalom was one of the most turbulent races, when our solid standing after the first run turned into some chaos in the second run. Credit again should go to our Nordic team for a very solid performance, and an outstanding one in particular on the men’s side.”
Next up are the 57th NCAA Ski Championships, which are set for March 10-13 on the same exact courses the western schools competed on this weekend. They will be joined by teams from the east and central regions.
NCAA SEEDS: Here are the final seeds by Colorado skiers: Men’s Nordic (Classic/Freestyle): Matt Gelso (2/2), Jesper Ostensen (3/5), Vegard Kjoelhamar (5/4), Reid Pletcher (13/9), Ian Mallams (22/12), Patrick Neel (24/14); Women’s Nordic (Classic/Freestyle): Eliska Hajkova (2/3), Joanne Reid (9/7), Alexa Turzian (14/4); Men’s Alpine (Giant Slalom/Slalom): Gabriel Rivas (4/4), Drew Roberts (21/8), Spencer Nelson (12/24), Taggart Spenst (23/16); Women’s Alpine (Giant Slalom/Slalom): Katie Hartman (3/11), Erika Ghent (6/8), Carolina Nordh (11/6), Sara Hjertman (10/10), Jennifer Allen (12/19), Joelle Chevalier (18/16).
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Congrats to our #2 ranked ski team on winning the NCAA Regionals! Hopefully we'll see a team national championship from them to go along with some individual titles!
:gobuffs:
