Brian Shpall. On the ladies side, we also have a talented recruit from the
Quebec Provincial Ski Team, Bronwyn Oatley, who we hope will fill some of
the void left by Mattie and Tucker. Strong returning athletes include Nicole
Dvorak, Lindsay Kraft and Tasha Woodworth.”
Nordic: “We graduated some solid senior talent last year,” says coach Gardner, “and while it would be easy to say we’re rebuilding, we have a crew of very
promising young skiers who will rise to the occasion. Junior World Championships competitor and NCAA Championships qualifier Patrick Johnson is
back to lead the men, while Elise Moody-Roberts returns to lead the women’s
team. We’re sad to miss a year of skiing from junior Sophie McClelland, who
will recover from knee surgery; but we have strong captains in Graham Egan
and Claire Luby and, again, a crop of incoming skiers that have amazing
promise.”
University of New Hampshire 9th in 2009
Nickname: Wildcats
NCAA Championships: None
Coaches: Cory Schwartz, Brian Blank, Stephen Monsulick, A.K. Walker
Alpine: “This year,” says coach Blank, “I have four 2009 All-Americans returning: Willie Ford, Mike Cremeno, Aileen Farrell and Veronique Archam-bault-Leger. I also have two very strong freshmen: Marie-Elaine Lepine and
Catherine Blanchard.”
Nordic: “We lost some key seniors last year, notably NCAA skier Sarah
Wright and also Marlijne Cook. On the women’s side we still have some good
depth: Tasha Kullas made NCAAs her freshman year but was injured last
year; and Katie Miller was a top- 15 finisher at carnivals her freshman year.
We’re also excited to have Elizabeth Guiney from Park City join us, a Junior
National champion and Scandinavian Cup competitor last year. On the men’s
team we have a lot of experience. Dylan McGuffin and Steve Bedard are our
top two skiers, while Erik Lindgren from Sweden is a top recruit.”
University of Nevada 10th in 2009
Nickname: Wolf Pack
NCAA Championships: None
Coaches: August Teague, Evan Weiss
Alpine: “Our core group of athletes have returned, they’re working hard and
having a good time,” says coach Weiss. “Last year, we qualified a complete
alpine team to NCAA Championships [and we expect to do the same this
year]. The women’s team includes NCAA qualifier Amy Harris. Other team
members include Canadian freshman Nicole Poleschuck and veterans Kristina Palovicova and Erika Horst. The men’s squad looks to rebound from an
inconsistent season where great results were hampered by lack of depth due
to injuries. A healthy Martin Harris is back, along with NCAA qualifier Shane
Collins. New faces include Italian transfer Aldo Ballibio, Cory McConnell,
and Tahoe local Jake Baker.”
Nordic: “Last year was a year of injury and illness,” says coach Teague. “This
year was looking like it was going to be a rebuilding year; however, due to [the
possibility of losing the the NCAA skiing program at UNR], it has become an
all-or-nothing assault. Last year we graduated half of our NCAA Championships team, so we’ll look to Kristin Ronnestrand and Jonathan Pluvinet to
lead our young team. Despite our economic setbacks, our goal of a top-four
finish at NCAA Championships has not changed.”
More teams to watch
Because NCAA ski racing is dominated by a handful of schools, a bunch of
others sometimes don’t get the recognition they deserve. This is especially
true for Northern Michigan University and the University of Alaska Fairbanks, two schools with stellar nordic-only programs. NMU managed a top-
10 finish at 2008’s NCAAs even without having alpine skiers to score, while
UAF produced 2008’s best male nordic skier, Marius Korthhauer, who won
the 20K classic and finished second in the 10K skate. Both schools had decent
performances in 2009 and look to be even stronger in 2010.
“Our women’s team is returning four seniors, all NCAA All-Americans,” says
Scott Jerome, head coach at University of Alaska Fairbanks. “We’ve also added true freshman Marit Rjabov, who looks as fit as anyone on the team. We’re
a bit younger on the men’s side, but we’re returning some athletes who were
injured last year, and we’ve got one of the nation’s best recruits in true freshman Tyler Kornfield, who competed at the J1 Scandinavian Cup last winter.”
In Maine, a pair of small liberal arts colleges have fortified their rosters with
hopes of cracking 2010’s highest stratum. “We have five new freshmen women
on our nordic squad,” says Tracey Cote, nordic coach at Colby College. “We’ve
also added Jake Burton, who will definitely bolster the men.” Just down the
road, Bates College alpine coach Rogan Conell returns four men who’ve consistently raced to top- 15 finishes in regular season carnivals. He also returns
NCAA Championships competitor Micaela Holland, and has added strong
recruits Zoe Livingston, Jeff Lathrop and Caitlin Forbes.
Montana State University may be the most improved team in 2010. “MSU
should fare well this season,” says program director Dan Brelsford. “Our
nordic program was strong last year and we should remain competitive this
year, as our freshman class should produce an additional standout on both
the men’s and women’s sides.” Brelsford, though, needed most to improve his
alpine squad, and his shrewdest recruiting arrives in the form of four very fast
men — Coloradan Johnny Kemp and Canadians Chris Barber, Jeff Irwin and
Mike Mackie.
DU; LINCOLN BENEDICT
