Ski team stood out in Montana

Author: Anna Furney

The 12 Panthers selected to compete in the NCAA skiing championships, hosted by Montana State University, were preparing to challenge their peer group of arguably the most conditioned, trained and talented college athletes in the world.

Finishing the weekend in fifth overall, you could say that the members of the men's and women's teams handled the challenge. Going up against larger Western schools - like eventual winner University of Denver - which have financial and recruiting advantages, Middlebury held its own.

Alpine coach Stever Bartlett wasted no time in noting that both the men's and women's teams had individuals earn All-American status.

Alec Tarberry '08 earned the esteemed honors in both the slalom and the giant slalom (GS), placing 10th and fifth respectively. Teammate Andrew Wagner '09 collected the prestigious title in the slalom after placing seventh, thanks in part to the day's fastest second run.

Aside from individual achievement, Bartlett noted that team achievements include the men's team, which was second in the nation in the slalom and third in the GS.

Megan Hughes '08, by placing ninth in the giant slalom, also collected All-American status - something with which she is quite familiar, having already been an All-American in 2005 and 2006.

The Nordic team churned out some stand-out performances as well. Alexa "Turbo" Turzian '11 finished in fourth in the 5K freestyle, but was the the top American, behind Univeristy of Colorado's Maria Moe Grevsgaard and Lenka Palanova and Denver's Annelise Bailly.

"I'm going to pause and remind folks that this girl is crazy young," said Nordic coach Andrew Gardner. "For a freshman girl to pop this type of race is unreal."

The fourth-place finish was nothing new for Turzian - she has placed outside of the top four only at U.S. Nationals and World Juniors this year.

The 5K was also a success for Cassidy Edwards '09, who finished 5.3 seconds out of All-American status in 11th place.

On the men's Nordic side, Simeon Hamilton '09 was the top Panther, finishing the 10K race in 13th place, followed by Patrick Johnson '11, who rallied for 22nd after surviving a week-long bout with what Gardner kindly referred to as "the plague."

However, Gardner said it was Dartmouth athlete and the day's victor Glenn Randall who should get the attention.

"It was clearly his type of day and he skied harder than anyone else," said Gardner. "[Dartmouth Nordic coach] Ruff Patterson told me that he'd never coached an individual NCAA winner. Now he has."

With this praise for a bitter rival, Gardner revealed that in ski racing, when push comes to shove and you find that your own team is not winning the races at a national competition, it at least better be someone from the Northeast.

March 7 was host to the second day of races, wherein the women took on the 15K classic and the men, the 20K classic races. The women's team had another reason to celebrate, as Turzain finished in eighth and earned herself another All-American honor. Edwards finished in 19th, while classmate Robyn Anderson placed 24th.

The men's team, continuing with their steady stream of impressive finishes, watched Hamilton finish the 20K classic in 13th, followed by Tim Reynolds '09 and Johnson in the 28th and 29th spots.

"This year we finished a best-ever for Middlebury in fifth with 529 points," said Bartlett. "It was highest combined total score ever. Last year, we finished sixth with 390 points. We raced today under a blue sky with plenty of sun and moderate temperatures, we were greeted in the morning with a beautiful alpenglow light reflecting off the mountain. Despite the stress and pressure of competing, there was no other place in the world that our team would rather be."

The coaches, team members and what Barlett referred to as "an awesome group of parents" left Montana with the satisfaction of knowing that Middlebury rallied for a school best, taking home a few medals, an impressive collection of All-American athletes and even bigger expectations for the '08-'09 season.