3.11 - [RELEASE] 2016 USCSA National Championships Day 4 Recap

LAKE PLACID, New York. – MARCH 11th, 2016.  The U.S. Collegiate Ski and Snowboard Association (USCSA) wrapped up the third day of competition at its 5-day long annual Collegiate National Championship today with a Nordic Sprint, men’s Alpine Slalom, women’s Skiercross, and women’s Snowboardcross. The Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA) is serving as host for all events over the five days of exciting competition at both Whiteface Mountain and the Olympic Ski Jumping Complex.

A record breaking 536 Collegiate athletes representing 67 universities across 6 regions will compete in 24 events within a 5-day period. This championship represents the best collegiate athletes from around the country. USCSA has member schools in every geographic region of the United States. Events include Giant Slalom, Slalom, Cross-Country Sprints, Cross-Country Relays, Cross-Country Distance, Slopestyle, Skiercross, Snowboardcross and a Rail Jam.  For a complete schedule of events, news, results, and list of schools, please go to the official USCSA website at www.uscsa.com.

The staff at the Olympic Jumping Complex literally moved mountains in order to hold the Nordic Sprint event, hauling snow from other areas in order to create a world class venue. They succeeded spectacularly. “The event was amazing! They turned the parking lot into a legit sprint stadium,” said Christi Boggs, USCSA Vice President for Nordic and Head Coach for the University of Wyoming. Boggs’ team also won two more National Championships^TM winning both the men’s and women’s titles. “The men did great and were challenged hard by western state Colorado university. The women's races have been amazing all week with only 4 points between the two top teams going into the relay,” Boggs said of her team’s performance.

Despite only having three racers qualify for the second run, consistent team skiing by their remaining athletes brought home the men’s Alpine Slalom National Championship^TM for Rocky Mountain College’s team. “This was a big time win after a three year dry spell. I have two seniors with individual wins but no overall team Championship. This win is huge for all of them,” said Rocky Mountain College Head Coach Jerry Wolf.

Boardercross and Skiercross action on the Wolf trail concluded with National Championships^TM being awarded to The College of Idaho’s women’s Skiercross team and Westminster College’s women’s boardercross team. “The ladies Skier and Boardercross were great events! Despite the warm conditions Whiteface was able to build us a fun course that maintained its integrity throughout the day. We are really appreciative of the entire team at Whiteface for their dedication to our event,” said Collin Casper, USCSA Vice President of Academic Affairs, who is also serving as Chief of Calculations for Snowboard and Freeski events.

Teams begin their quest to qualify for the U.S. Collegiate Skiing and Snowboarding National Championship^TM in their local conference competitions – held across 11 conferences spanning the nation. Top teams from each conference attend one of 6 regional championships, which decide who ultimately qualifies to participate in events held this week.  

As the events unfold over next week in Lake Placid, please join the USCSA athletes, families and friends in celebrating this pinnacle of collegiate competition by following athlete performance either in person or online at www.uscsa.com. Team and Individual results will be posted daily online at the USCSA website. Check in daily for Live Video and Audio Feeds online at http://broadcast.uscsa.com

The USCSA is the sports federation for collegiate team ski racing and Snowboarding in America. The USCSA believes that student-athletes of all levels and abilities should have access to quality and exciting venues of competition. Team performance is emphasized within the USCSA, a departure from the typical individual or world cup scoring format often found in skiing. USCSA athletes agree that this team orientation fosters a team approach across their collegiate athletic and academic careers, and often the mentality proves indispensable in their adult lives and careers. The organization includes 180 colleges from coast to coast, fielding over 4,700 male and female, Alpine, Freeski, cross-country, Snowboarding and Nordic ski jumping athletes in over 300 events annually.

For more information or to schedule an interview, please contact Laura Sullivan at laurasullivan@uscsa.com

Photo Information:

All pictures credited to Sarah Jean Photography - sarahjeanphotographymn.com 

Each picture file name includes the athlete name and school