Featured Image: Declan McCormack (UVM) skiing on Dynastar Skis competing in the giant slalom at the EISA Championships. Credit: Stephen Cloutier @blockislandsteve
The EISA Championships began on Friday with the slalom at the Middlebury College Snow Bowl. The pressure was high with athletes looking to lock up spots in the NCAA Championships.
First Day- Slalom EISA Championships
An unfortunate overnight snowstorm left a few inches on top of the track and challenged the racers all day long.
The slalom took place on the famed “Allen” slope, which starts with a twenty-gate flat before breaking over to a moderate pitch and flattening out at the finish. The men were up first, and Declan McCormack (UVM) showed his eagerness to follow up his slalom win from a week ago at Williams. He pushed hard on the opening flats and came down with a slim lead over Hunter Brayton (UNH). Margins were tight across the men’s field, with the flip 30 separated by only 2.39 seconds.
The women had a first run set they could fully attack, and Justine Clement (UVM) took advantage. Clement has been a force in slalom this season, with four podiums in five races but only one win. Mika-Anne Reha (Middlebury), winner of last weekend’s slalom race and carrying some serious momentum into her home carnival, was in second place, hot on Clements’s tails.
The sun came out in full force, leading to a peely layer that would challenge racers. Amidst all of this, Hayden Dahl (UNH) skied a superb second run to move up ten spots to fifth. Maximilian Haussman (Plymouth State) moved into fourth, his season’s best result. Dan Gillis (Dartmouth) rounded out the podium, which ended an unfortunate string of DNFs to grab his fourth podium of the year.
Impressively, Gillis has finished on the podium in all slalom races he has completed this season. The top two remained unchanged, with Brayton unable to best McCormack by a sufficient margin.
As the sun continued to bake, the women tackled a challenging second run set. A difficult flush set at the end of the flats proved a critical piece. Still, the best found a way, as they always do. Cydnie Timmerman and Moa Clementson joined Clement in the top 5.
Emma Reynolds from Dartmouth made an impressive climb of five spots to secure her first collegiate podium position. On the other hand, Reha showcased exceptional skiing in the second run, which led her to claim a well-deserved victory over Clement.
On the team side, the University of Vermont held an incredibly narrow eight-point lead over Dartmouth. UNH, was in third, narrowly ahead of hosts Middlebury and Colby.
Second Day- Giant Slalom EISA Championships
The forecast called for temperatures to cool dramatically overnight, which set the surface up for a fantastic second day of racing.
The regular season wrapped up on Saturday with a frigid day of racing at Middlebury. An electric crowd was on hand to cheer on the home Panthers, providing an extra layer of excitement. The season’s last race is always special, as many skiers make their final collegiate starts, and others are eager to lock in an NCAA Championships spot.
A straight first-run set proved challenging in its own right, as some gave the course too much respect. Still, some were aggressive and able to take advantage. Amongst them was Olivia Holm (Dartmouth), a senior racing in her last regular season race. She used bib-1 to deliver the fastest time of the morning, narrowly ahead of a trio of Swedish UVM racers.
After the top 30 had gone, a shocking run from Linn Liedholm (UVM) rocketed her from bib-50 all the way to 4th place. The finish was indicative of the move-ups athletes were making. Six other racers with bibs tiger than 46 made the flip 30, using the stellar surface to make the moves.
Declan McCormack (UVM), hot off his victory in the slalom, delivered a quick first run to take advantage of just over two-tenths into the second run. Behind McCormack was his teammate Kyle Alexander, who had raced in only two carnivals this season but was second in one of them. In third was Middlebury’s own Brad Underhill. With a straight and short course, margins were incredibly close, particularly in the men’s first run. 10th to 30th place was separated by only a second, and the top 60 were within three seconds of the leader.
A more technical second run set from hosts Middlebury brought speeds down and forced athletes to work for speed across the lower half of the challenge.
When the inspection finished, a long line of Middlebury students trudged up the icy slope to the famous Roost to cheer on the home team. They were rowdy and loud, eager to let the Panthers and opposing schools hear them.
The second run began as the crowd continued to grow. Mika-Anne Reha, benefiting from her classmates’ enthusiasm, moved up nine positions on the second run to finish in fourth. Larsson-Nathhorst moved back to third but still got her fifth podium of the season, and Ella Renzoni (UVM) moved up from 11th place to 2nd for her best result this season.
Like Reha, Underhill had something to prove on his home hill. He attacked coming onto the flats and came down in the lead, guaranteeing himself a podium. He saw off Alexander, who slipped to fourth and had made up time on McCormack at the interval, but McCormack had some extra fire, and he skied a dominant bottom section to snatch the win.
McCormack, who finished the season as the points leader in giant slalom, had four wins in the event plus two more in slalom. The students in attendance made it exciting for McCormack. He stated, “Having Midd students scale the slope and fill the finish area is special. It’s the only venue that has that tradition. I hope it continues.”
On the team side, UVM cruised to another carnival victory, and the Catamounts won all but one carnival this season. Dartmouth sat in the familiar second-place position, and hosts Middlebury finished in third.
The last race of the season brought celebrations for many and moments of reflection as long careers came to a close.
For the women’s winner, Holm, the emotions helped her finish a chapter on a high note, “It was my last regular season collegiate race, meaning that I truly felt that I had nothing to lose. To handle the distractions, I focused on keeping it simple. My goal was to make good turns and enjoy the day, and I wanted to be proud of the skiing I put down.”
The NCAA Qualifying race has finished, and UVM, UNH, and Dartmouth will all qualify a full team of three men and three women for racing at Steamboat and Howelsen in two weeks. Middlebury, Colby, Saint Michael’s, Bates, Plymouth State, Harvard, and Williams have also qualified at least one racer. For Bates and Williams, it is their first qualifier in the post-pandemic era, while Colby will bring its largest team since 2015.
About the Author: Caleb Horsch
