| Follow @UVMskiing The University of Vermont ski team sits in third place and tied with the Unviersity of New Mexico with 106 points after the first day of racing at the 2015 NCAA Ski Championships in Lake Placid, New York.
RELATED LINKSTeam Standings (.pdf)Men's 10K Freestyle Results (.pdf)Women's 5K Freestyle Results (.pdf) The first day of competition featured the men's 10K and women's 5K freestyle races at Mt. Van Hoevenburg.
The men started things off in the morning. Dartmouth's Patrick Caldwell, who dominated the EISA Circuit this season, took home the individual NCAA title with a winning time of 25:09.1. Moritz Madlener of Denver was second (25:11.3) and Rune Malo Oedegaard of Colorado was third (25:35.1) to round out the podium.
Jack Hegman , who is making his NCAA debut, led the Catamounts. Hegman was the first Vermont skier across the finish line, placing sixth overall with a time of 26:16.5. He was the second skier from an Eastern school across the finish line. Senior
Rogan Brown added a ninth place finish (26:25.5) and
Jorgen Grav was 16th (26:52.1) to round out the UVM contingent.
Hegman and Brown earned NCAA All-America Second Team honors. Both Brown and Grav, who are making their third NCAA appearance, posted their best finishes in an NCAA freestyle race.
In the women's race, the Utah's Veronika Mayerhofer won the race by 13 seconds, finishing with a time of 14:21.4. Sylvia Thorson Nordskar of Denver was second (14:34.6) and Emilie Cedervaern of New Mexico was third (14:37.2).
MK Cirelli Western teams took the first 10 spots in the standings. UVM's
MK Cirelli was the top Eastern skier, placing 11th overall with a time of 14:53.8 to lead the Catamounts. Cirelli is racing in the NCAAs for the second time in her career, but first for Vermont after transferring to UVM from Northern Michigan.
Stephanie Kirk , who won the Elite 89 Award as the student-athlete competing in the NCAA Ski Championships with the best GPA (3.98), finished 18th (15:24.9). It was Kirk's best finish in an NCAA freestyle race in her career.
Alayna Sonnesyn , the 2015 EISA Women's Nordic Rookie of the Year, was 22nd (15:35.5) in her NCAA debut to round out the Catamounts competing.
The NCAA Ski Championships continue on Thursday (March 12) with the first day of alpine racing and giant slalom races at Whiteface Mountain. Both races will be streamed online for free at NCAA.com.
Thursday, March 12 9 a.m. – Women's Giant Slalom – run to completion (Whiteface Mountain) -
click here to watch 12 p.m. – Men's Giant Slalom – run to completion (Whiteface Mountain) -
click here to watch
