Photo by: Neil Hetherington
Championship Season: Bobcat Skiers Host RMISA/NCAA West Regional Meet
2/21/2013 2:44:00 PM | Skiing
For the Montana State ski team it’s been a downhill progression all season in hopes of peaking for the Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Ski Association (RMISA) Championships, NCAA West Regional and NCAA Championships taking place the next sixteen days.
For the Montana State ski team it's been a downhill progression all season in hopes of peaking for the Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Ski Association (RMISA) Championships, NCAA West Regional and NCAA Championships taking place the next sixteen days.
The RMISA Championship, which is part of the NCAA West Regional, will take place this weekend at Bridger Bowl and Bohart Ranch. The Nordic events will begin on Friday at 9 a.m., with the 5/10-kilometer classic race. The Nordic portion of the meet will conclude with the 15/20K freestyle at 8:30 a.m., Saturday morning.
Aside from looking to win its first ever RMISA/NCAA West Region titles, the Bobcat ski team will also be attempting to qualify a complete team of 12 participants for the NCAA Championships, March 6-9 in Middlebury, Vermont.
A complete team consists of six Nordic racers (3 men, 3 women) and six alpine participants (3 men, 3 women).
Currently, the Bobcat men's Nordic team has two student-athletes that have locked up spots at the national meet. Two-time All American Tyler Reinking and Pat Madden have qualified for the NCAA meet.
David Norris, who took the RMISA by storm last year and earned two All-America honors, returns with one shot at qualifying. Norris, a native of Fairbanks, Alaska, spent most of the season skiing at the World Championships in Canada and the OPA Cup series in Europe.
Jessica Yeaton has earned a trip to the NCAAs on the women's side, with Isabella Smith, Annie Liotta and Cambria McDermott all fighting to gain entrance.
“We have some kids that need to have a great weekend,” said MSU Nordic coach Chad Andersen. “We have been getting faster and faster each week and our expectation is to win a team title, something that we have never done.”
The alpine races will be held on Hanton's Hollow. The giant slalom event will begin on Saturday at 9:30 a.m. with the women's first run, followed by the men. The slalom races will take place on Sunday, beginning with the men's first run at 9:15 a.m., followed by the women.
Montana State has four racers that are solid fixes for the NCAAs and include Michael Radford, Stephanie Irwin, Kelly McBroom and Marissa Riopelle.
“We're looking to win the thing and have our major players gain top ten finishes,” said MSU's alpine coach Luke Patterson. “We are definitely familiar with the hill and conditions. We just need to step-it-up and get it done.”
Looking to make the NCAA list on the men's side are Mike Mackie and Sam Monsen.
Wednesday, June 10
Thursday, November 12
Saturday, March 10
Thursday, March 08
