Men's Alpine Skiing
ECSC MacConnell Division
Men's Alpine Skiing Returns to Slopes at West Mountain
CASTLETON, Vt. – After a strong showing at the opening competition a week ago, the Castleton men's alpine skiing team is back on the slopes this weekend at West Mountain to compete in both the giant slalom and slalom.
The Spartans placed first and second in the giant slalom and slalom, respectively, at the first competition, placing a plethora of competitors among the top 15 finishers. The squad had its first overall individual winner of the year, as Erik Brobacke claimed the No. 1 spot in the GS last Friday.
Matt Couture posted a solid opening week as well, posting a pair of top-10 finishes by finishing seventh in the slalom and 10th in the giant slalom. Jan Klindic's first races as a Spartan we successful, as the rookie placed 11th overall in Thursday's slalom event before finishing 11th in the giant slalom on Saturday. He showed a marked improvement in his second run in each of the two events, shaving more than three seconds off of his first run time in the giant slalom.
Paul Klosterman posted strong runs for the Spartans on both days as well, crossing in 15th place in the slalom before registering his first top 10 finish of the season, seventh overall, in the giant slalom. Cameron Heald also looks to help lead the Spartans going forward, as the sophomore transfer in eighth place on opening day, just seconds off Couture's pace in the slalom. He did not finish in the giant slalom, failing to complete his second run, but he posted a strong time in the initial round.
Andrew Borden is another racer to watch for the Spartans, as the rookie notched a top-30 finish in the first slalom of the year before bouncing back with a 17th-place finish in the giant slalom out of more than 70 racers. Another freshman, Carter Lawrence, also posted strong times in his first collegiate action, finishing 18th overall in the slalom and 26th overall in the giant slalom.