ALPINE

USSA

The SVSEF USSA Team has seven athletes who have qualified for U16 Nationals, to be held at Mission Ridge, Washington, March 30th-April 4th. The athletes who have qualified are Marit Kaiser, Ryder Sarchett, Charlie Snyder, Ridley Lindstrom, Finn Mallinen, Josh Blackburn, and Buey Grossman.
U16 Western Region Championships, Alyeska

 
SVSEF USSA athletes impressed at U16 Western Region Championships in Alyeska, Alaska, walking away with a number of podiums and top-10s throughout the series. Ryder Sarchett was the overall men’s winner, with two overwhelming victories and a third place, to boot.
Prior to three days of racing, athletes completed SkillsQuest, a U.S. Ski and Snowboard program focusing on improving abilities over a range of activities. Athletes had combined scores from an off piste freeski, hourglass, lane change and an outside ski turn – Buey Grossman and Marit Kaiser had top-10 scores, with Buey having the third best score for men and Marit the fourth best for women.
In the men’s giant slalom, Ryder Sarchett won by two seconds, and Ridley Lindstrom had the best giant slalom race of his career, finishing third. Buey Grossman was fourth, Charlie Snyder 13th and Finn Mallinen 18th. Josh Blackburn and Max Moss did not finish. On the same day, women competed in the slalom. SVSEF had two finishers in the top 10, with Marit Kaiser in ninth and Sage Curtis in 10th, meaning SVSEF had five athletes in the top 10 across men and women’s competition for the day. Carly Walther-Porino was 15th, Emma MacGuffie 45th, Anhwei Kirk 49th and Falon Hanna 53rd.
 

 
The men tackled the slalom the next day, with Ryder Sarchett again topping the podium, this time with an even larger lead of over three seconds. Charlie Snyder was fourth overall. Josh Blackburn won the Hard Charger award for the race, starting 63rd and moving into 11th. Finn Mallinen was 15th. In the women’s giant slalom race on the same day, Merumo Ishimaru skied to fifth, Marit Kaiser to 16th, Sage Curtis to 30th and Carly Walther-Porino to 32nd. Falon Hanna tied for 48th, as did Anhwei Kirk for 52nd, and Emma MacGuffie finished 54th.
The final event of the series was the super G – SVSEF kept plowing along, with two athletes on the podium. Charlie Snyder had a great race and finished second, and Ryder Sarchett upped his podium count to three with a third place finish. Finn Mallinen was eighth and Ridley Lindstrom ninth, putting four boys in the top 10. Josh Blackburn was 11th, Buey Grossman 15th and Max Moss 36th. In the women’s event, Marit Kaiser skied to 11th, Sage Curtis to 13th and Falon Hanna to 22nd. Merumo Ishimaru finished 35th, Emma MacGuffie 39th and Anhwei Kirk 47th.
Full results
 

FIS, Alumni

Nationals
With fluctuations in temperatures and precipitation, Nationals in Sun Valley were touch-and-go, and SVSEF athletes took the adjustments in stride. For a number of them, this was their first Nationals. Alumnus Haley Cutler, who now skis for the University of New Mexico, skied near the top of the field in the super G, finishing sixth on March 21 and fifth on March 23. Erin Smith’s best finish was 17th in the super G, while Lily Fitzgerald’s was 20th in the alpine combined. Alumni Kipling Weisel and Tanner Farrow went back and forth throughout the week; in the March 21 super G, Tanner was 11th and Kipling 13th, and they finished 11th and 12th in the alpine combined. Similarly, in the March 23 super G, Kipling skied to 15th and Tanner to 16th. Jack Smith found his stride in the March 23 super G, coming in 25th overall, as Spencer Wright did in the slalom with a 35th place result. Hayden Terjeson had his top result in the alpine combined, finishing 17th.
Lily, Erin, Jack, Hayden, Spencer and John Blackburn (who qualified for Nationals and competed in the giant slalom, but did not finish) will be joined by Skylar Cooley, Allison Rathfon and Maddie Ferris for U.S. Alpine Junior Championships, which begin March 28 in Sun Valley.
Full results
 

IMD

Tri-Divisional Champs, Snowbasin
Athletes headed to Snowbasin for Tri-Divisional Championships, which they qualified for according to IMD procedures. IMD athletes competed in fields populated by skiers from Alaska and Northern Divisions, and U14s and U16s had a combined seeding.
In the giant slalom, Axel Hattrup was 12th overall and the 12th U16. Robert Cullen was 28th for U14 boys, Zephyr Carruth was 30th, Taylor Rixon 32nd, and Tommy Normand 37th. For U14 girls, Reece Walther-Porino led the SVSEF group in fifth. She was followed by Isabella Hattrup in sixth, Izzy Gaggero in 16th, Laura Daves in 26th, Mattigan Monschke in 29th and Lena Nelson in 30th. Charlotte Davis-Jeffers finished 34th, Maile Dorland 46th and Dakota Barth 52nd for U14s.
In the slalom, Axel Hattrup was eighth for U16 boys. Taylor Rixon skied to 13th for U14 boys, Jesse Keefe to 32nd, Zephyr Carruth to 37th and Tommy Normand to 49th. For girls, Reece Walther-Porino and Maile Dorland had great finishes in sixth and seventh, as did Laura Daves in 13th. Isabella Hattrup was 27th, Izzy Gaggero to 34th, Charlotte Davis-Jeffers to 36th, and Dakota Barth to 40th. Mattigan Monschke was 48th, and Lena Nelson 60th.
 

FIS

WR Open Tech Series, Snowbird
FIS athletes were at Snowbird for a Western Region Open Tech Series. This is the second tier of FIS racing within the region; as an introductory series, athletes from the five divisions gain valuable FIS-level experience. In the giant slalom, John Blackburn finished 19th, Max Noddings was 21st and Will Snyder (alum, Williams) was 23rd. Allison Rathon led the way for the women, finishing 10th overall in the giant slalom. Maddie Ferris charged to 13th, Grace Pepin was 31st, Skylar Cooley 35th and Elizabeth Vanderkloot 39th. In the NJR slalom, Will Snyder was ninth, Max Noddings 19th and Thomas Klose 22nd. Cailin Chandler was the only SVSEF woman to finish the NJR slalom – she was 19th.
The series wrapped up with two slaloms. Will Snyder was 12th and 10th, Bennett Snyder 27th and 18th, and Max Noddings did not finish the first slalom but was 22nd in the second. Ella Pepin, an alum who skis for St. Lawrence, finished seventh for women in the first race, and sister Grace finished 24th and 28th. Allison Rathfon did not finish in the first slalom, but bounced back for the second, coming in 19th. Maddie Ferris, Elizabeth Vanderkloot and Cailin Chandler went 29, 33 and 37 in the first slalom, and did not finish in the second. Skylar Cooley was 29th in the first.
Full results
 

North Series

IMD Finals, Bogus Basin
Four athletes competed at IMD Finals at Bogus Basin. “It was a really great way to end the season for these four kids, they skied great races,” said coach Adele Savaria. “It’s always nice to have the advantage of competing close to home – Bogus was a great venue.” Bodin Lee found the podium in the boy’s U12 slalom in third, and Bryce Kanowsky was 14th for U14s. In the girls’ U10 category, Reese Kelley finished fourth, and Alyssa Huntsman was sixth. In the giant slalom, Bodin finished fifth, and Bryce did not finish. Reese was fifth and Alyssa seventh for U10 girls.
 
Full results
 
 

CROSS COUNTRY

Gold, PG, Comp

The SuperTour Finals are the culmination of the domestic SuperTour circuit, and this year they were held at Craftsbury, Vermont. Gold, PG and Comp athletes participated, as well as alumni who are skiing for colleges out east. Kelsey Phinney of the Gold Team led the SVSEF women in the classic sprint, finishing ninth overall. Katie Feldman (alum, Middlebury) was 36, U16 Comp athlete Anja Jensen was 61st, and PG Ingrid Norton finished 77th. Gold Team skiers Cole Morgan and Kevin Bolger finished 13th and 14th, Matt Gelso was 39th, alum Peter Wolter represented Middlebury in 40th, as did Sam Wood in 48th. Alum Henry Gorman (UNH) finished 63rd, Will Solow 67th (PG) and Max Polito (alum, Middlebury) 82nd.
Following the sprint was a mass start skate 10/15km. Kelsey Phinney finished 18th, Annika Landis (alum, Middlebury) 36th, Katie Feldman 37th, Anja Jensen 61st, Comp skier Ella Wolter 79th and alum (St. Lawrence) Emily Siegel 84th. Jack Hegman of the Gold Team had a solid result in the men’s 15km, finishing eighth among top U.S. peers. Matt Gelso did, as well, coming in 11th. Sam Wood was 35th, Rogan Brown 37th, Kevin Bolger 39th, Peter Wolter 56th, Henry Gorman 60th, Cole Morgan 63rd, Will Solow 65th and Max Polito 96th.
A team relay was the third event, with two men and two women each skiing a 5km leg. The Middlebury College team, which had Peter Wolter scrambling and Katie Feldman anchoring, took ninth.SVSEF’s team of Jack Hegman, Anja Jensen, Rogan Brown and Kelsey Phinney finished 14th, and Sam Wood and Annika Landis’ Middlebury team was 16th.
Racing winds down Tuesday and Wednesday with the women’s 30km and the men’s 50km classic mass start.
Full results