WATERVILLE, N.H. -- The Bates alpine skiing teams continued their strong opening weekend with six Bobcats placing in the top 30 among collegiate skiers in the giant slalom Saturday at the Harvard Carnival.
The men's team combined to score 78 carnival points, good for fifth out of 15 schools in the GS. Meanwhile the women scored 61 points, placing seventh.Â
Sophomore Arie van Vuuren (Boulder, Colo.) and junior Joe Gillis (Branford, Conn.) finished tied for 18th place out of 92 skiers overall and 17th among collegiate skiers. Both turned in a two-run combined time of 2:10.13, earning 27 carnival points and 14 NCAA points each.
Fifth-year senior captain Michael Cooper (Alta, Calif.) placed 21st, finishing with a two-run combined time of 2:10.14, a tenth of a second behind his teammates. Cooper picked up 24 carnival points and 11 NCAA points. Senior captain Ryan Clermont (Lincoln, N.H.) finished 32nd overall and 30th among collegiate skiers, earning one NCAA point with a two-run combined time of 2:11.78.Â
Junior Hannah West (Bend, Ore.) led the Bates women for the second straight day, placing 17th among collegiate skiers and 18th overall with a two-run combined time of 2:15.42, earning 25 carnival points and 14 NCAA points. Sophomore Tess Coutu (Foster, R.I.) landed in the top 25 for the second straight day, placing 21st overall and 20th among collegiate skiers. She recorded a two-run combined time of 2:15.56, earning 23 carnival points and 11 NCAA points. Sophomore Daphne James (Sausalito, Calif.) and senior captain Emma Finfer (Highland Park, Ill.) tied for 36th overall, with James earning 13 carnival points to round out the scoring for the women.
The Bates women's and men's alpine skiing teams combined with the Nordic teams to score 420 points overall, good for sixth place among 15 schools, placing ahead of the likes of Williams, Bowdoin and Harvard.Â
The Bates alpine skiing teams head to Stowe Mountain Resort this upcoming Friday and Saturday for the UVM Carnival.Â