BARTLETT, N.H. - The Alaska Anchorage ski team's streak of 22-consecutive top-10 finishes at the NCAA Championships has come to an end as the Seawolves placed 12th in the final team standings after today's men's and women's slalom races on the fourth and final day of events here at the 2007 NCAA Skiing Championships.
UAA, which competed with six skiers at the National meet, finished 43 points out of the top 10 with 243 overall. The Seawolves did place two positions and 26 points higher than instate rival Alaska Fairbanks (14th), which also qualified six skiers.
The final team result - the lowest since placing 14th in 1984 - marks just the third time in program history the Seawolves haven't placed in the top 10 at Nationals.
Another stellar day from Dartmouth in today's slalom races helped it claim the team championship for the first time since sharing the championship with Colorado in 1976. The Big Green, who placed first in the women's slalom and second in the men's, amassed 698 points overall to outlast second-place Denver by 50. The Big Green's title is the first by an Eastern school since Vermont claimed the championship trophy in 1994. The last outright title by Dartmouth was in 1958.
Defending national champion Colorado placed third (592), followed by Utah in fourth (536) and Vermont in fifth (400.5). Other RMISA schools in the top 10 were New Mexico (6th, 390), Montana State (9th, 310) and Nevada (288.5).
The Seawolves, who stood ninth heading into today's slalom, were only able to earn six team points as its lone Alpine qualifier - sophomore Stefanie Klocker - finished a disappointing 34th after taking a spill on her first run. Klocker, who had recorded three podium finishes in the slalom during the regular season, clocked a two-run time of 2:15.22.
New Mexico's Malin Hemmingsson won the women's individual slalom title by recording a time of 1:45.77, while Denver's Adam Cole earned his second NCAA title in three days by claiming the men's slalom (1:43.36).
UAA earned three All-America honors at this year's NCAAs, bringing its all-time certificate total to 106. The Seawolves should rebound next season as they lose only one of their six national championship qualifiers - senior Kasandra Rice - to graduation.
