Press Release-Strong Results from Ski & Snowboard Club Vail Alpine Racers at U16 Nationals-April 3, 2015

Ski & Snowboard Club Vail (SSCV) alpine racers travelled to Sugarloaf in Maine this week for the United States Ski and Snowboard Association (USSA) U16 National Championships.  This championship brought 107 of the top 13, 14 and 15 year-old men and women from across the country to compete in Super G, giant slalom and slalom.

SSCV’s Bridger Gile was the Overall Winner of U16 Nationals with SSCV’s Colby Lange taking second overall for the men.  SSCV’s Nellie Rose Talbot was third overall for the women.

SSCV athletes took five top 3 overall podium spots over three days of racing and eight top 3 results among the U14 competitors (the youngest of competitors).

Twelve men and twelve women from SSCV earned invitations to the U16 National Championships this year.   “These athletes are truly performing at the highest levels in the nation for their age groups,” said Rob Worrell, SSCV USSA Team Head Coach.  “This season they brought home consistently strong results enabling them to qualify for U16 Rocky/Central Championships or U14 Rocky/Central Championships, depending on their age, where they performed at the top of their game to qualify for U16 Nationals.  It was great to see their season culminate with a strong week at Nationals.  Their accomplishments are the direct result of hard work and dedication all season long.”

Terry DelliQuadri, SSCV U14 Head Coach for the eight U14 (2000 birth year) athletes shared, “This group of eight SSCV U14 athletes that made up our team to the Nationals has consistently dominated at state and regional level competitions.  Competing at the national level was a great opportunity to see how we stack up against athletes from other parts of the country.  This event proved that our athletes are among the highest level of competitors in the country.  Six of the eight U14 athletes competing from Vail ended up on a podium.  We took almost half of the podiums in the U14 age category.”

In the ladies’ Super G event, SSCV’s Nellie Rose Talbot took the overall win.  SSCV’s Kaitlyn Harsch took first and SSCV’s Ainsley Proffit took third among the U14 women in Super G.  On the men’s side, SSCV athletes grabbed four of the top ten spots in Super G. SSCV’s Colby Lange and Bridger Gile took gold and silver, respectively, while Jacob Dilling finished 8^th and Matt Macaluso finished 10^th.

“The conditions couldn’t have been better with clear blue skies and enough chill in the air to keep the track firm throughout the race,” said Worrell.  “Our athletes were able to use those ideal course conditions to their advantage.”

The racers faced tough giant slalom courses on Thursday.  SSCV’s U14 ladies were up for the challenge, with Kaitlyn Harsch finishing 9^th overall, and first among U14 women, and Allie Resnick finishing 11^th overall and second among U14 women.  On the men’s side, SSCV’s Bridger Gile came up with the Gold with the fastest combined overall time, with SSCV’s Colby Lange taking the Silver overall while SSCV U14 Axel Bailey took 2^nd for the U14 men.

For Friday’s top slalom performances for SSCV, Nellie Rose Talbot took 4^th overall while Kaitlyn Harsch took 10^th overall and 1^st for the U14 women.  Cleo Braun took 2^nd among the U14 women.  Among the top 10 SSCV athletes for the men in slalom, Matt Macaluso took 5^th, Jacob Dilling took 8^th and Brendan Keane took 10^th.

Karen Ghent, SSCV Alpine Program Director, could not have been prouder of the SSCV athletes at U16 Nationals, stating, “This is by far the most prestigious event these young athletes have competed in and not only were their performances a testament to their athletic ability but also their mental toughness to stay focused and perform at their personal bests.  This combination of strengths could be viewed on the results lists.  More importantly, the overall experience of becoming a part of a national racing community through their participation in U16 Nationals is something that they will take with them to help propel them to the next level in the years to come.”

All SSCV athlete results are listed below.  For a complete list of results go to www.live-timing.com.