UVM leads standings as Colby Carnival kicks off NCAA season

Joachim Jagge Lindstol. Photo: Stephen Cloutier | PhotoGroup.us

The Colby Carnival kicked off the 2022 college circuit at Sugarloaf on Friday, Jan. 14. The University of Vermont (UVM) came out on top overall, followed by Dartmouth in second and Middlebury in third. Some adjustments had to be made due to weather — the GS course was shortened slightly and the slalom was postponed from Saturday to Sunday due to extreme cold temperatures.

“We were really proud to host it,” said Colby Head Alpine Coach Eric Harlow. “Sugarloaf to me is synonymous to big events. The Sugarloaf events department completely delivered above and beyond. The crew there was amazing and everyone was really proud and determined to make the event amazing. … We couldn’t have been happier or asked for a better surface, in the GS especially.”

Within the EISA, there are 14 teams scored in the overall rankings, which include Nordic results. Thirteen of these schools have alpine teams (Bowdoin does not). Due to COVID, there was not a true carnival season last year, so anticipation was at an all-time high for racers to get back out there.

The women

Marina Vilanova, of UVM, won the GS by .86 seconds, but the Middlebury women wound up on top in the team results after three of their athletes finished in the top seven. This included Lucia Bailey in second, Alexandra Cossette in fifth, and Sofia Yubero in seventh. This was Bailey’s best result in a carnival and her first time on a carnival GS podium.

The UVM women dominated the slalom on Sunday, finishing the day on top. Moa Clementson led UVM to the victory, winning the race on Sunday by over a second. She set herself up to do so with a competitive third-place first run and secured it with the fastest second run of the day.

“I’m super happy about today. It was really fun racing my first carnival. It was perfect conditions, icy and cold,” she said. This was the UVM freshman’s first introduction to the EISA circuit and a great way to start her college skiing career. “I’m really looking forward to more carnivals,” she said.

The men

Joachim Jagge Lindstol, a junior at UVM, won both the slalom and GS.

“The snow in the first run was aggressive and softer than people expected,” Lindstol said. “There was a layer of snow from the snow guns on top of the ice. We got down on the ice in the second run, which was good for me since I started 30. I had the same approach to this race as I had in the GS. Attacking the course while being stable and avoiding mistakes. Super happy about the weekend.”

Despite Lindstol’s wins and his teammate Declan Mccormack’s third-place finish in the slalom, UVM could not quite snag the top men’s slalom rank of the weekend. The University of New Hampshire (UNH) finished with a few more points by stacking three men into the top five: William Bruneau Bouchard (second), Peder Ersnaes (fourth), and Marius Solbakken (fifth).

Middlebury was the top men’s GS team. Their fastest athlete was Bradshaw Underhill, who finished in second place. This was Underhill’s first time starting a Carnival for Middlebury.

Host-school Colby was the fifth team on the scoreboard after the weekend and is looking forward to trying to improve on the result throughout the season. “Colby skiing is building toward a new level of competitiveness,” said Harlow. “We are proud of Colby’s performance this weekend but know we can ski even faster are excited to build on the speed in the future.”

You can view the team scoring from the Colby Carnival here and the full results here.

The St. Michaels Carnival is scheduled to take place on Jan. 21-22 at Smugglers Notch in Vermont.