FARMINGTON, Maine – The University of Maine at Farmington snowsports program will send a school-record 29 student-athletes to the USCSA National Championships, set to begin on March 10 in Bend, Oregon.
In total, student-athletes will compete in seven disciplines: men's alpine, women's alpine, women's Nordic, men's freeski, women's freeski, men's snowboarding, and women's snowboarding.
The men's alpine team qualified for the USCSA National Championships after finishing sixth overall at the Eastern Regionals. In the two-day event, the Beavers placed seventh in the giant slalom on Saturday and improved to sixth in the slalom on Sunday, securing a sixth-place finish for the weekend. While the men's alpine team boasts exceptional depth, only five athletes will compete at nationals: Jacob Roy (Frenchville, Maine), Sam Roy (Frenchville, Maine), Lake Lindelof (Belfast, Maine), Colgan O'Keefe (Westchester, N.Y.), and Lance Dolan (Coplin Plantation, Maine).
On the women's alpine side, the Beavers delivered a historic performance at the Eastern Regional Championships, finishing fourth overall for the two-day event. Farmington placed fifth in the giant slalom and second in the slalom, tying for second place with Northeastern University and Babson College. However, due to a three-way tiebreaker, the Beavers officially placed fourth. Representing Farmington in Oregon will be Elanore Robb (Woodbury, Minn.), Hokulani Caroselli (Temple, Maine), Rosie St. Cyr (Pownal, Maine), Grace Mahmood (Oxford, Conn.), and Fallon Smith (Nelson, N.H.).
In women's Nordic, the Beavers qualified for nationals after finishing third at the Eastern Regional Championship two weekends ago. Originally scheduled as a two-day event, the competition was reduced to one day due to weather conditions. Farmington placed third out of nine USCSA teams, accumulating 32 points. The team was led by junior Ayla Bodach-Turner, who won the 7.5K skate event. Bodach-Turner, a USCSA All-American last season, will be joined at nationals by sophomore Cora Treiss (Berlin, N.H.) and first-year Kelsey McCrum (Greenbush, Maine).
The University of Maine at Farmington men's and women's freeski and snowboard teams competed this past weekend at the Eastern Regional Championship at West Mountain in Queensbury, New York. The event featured a slopestyle competition for both freeski and snowboard athletes, as well as slalom and giant slalom races.
In men's freeski slopestyle, Farmington swept the podium, with Maxwell Hamilton (Brunswick, Maine) earning gold, Arden Weaver (Surry, Maine) taking silver, and Zach Chaisson (Scarborough, Maine) securing bronze.
For men's snowboarding, Caelan Billings (Sullivan, Maine) dominated both the slalom and giant slalom, placing first in both events. In the slopestyle competition, Ezra Mathieu (Lewiston, Maine) and Kyle Ingalls (Bowdoin, Maine) led the way, finishing first and second, respectively. Dominique Richard (Lewiston, Maine) and Ben Taylor (Scarborough, Maine) will also be competing in the freeski National Championships. Tucker Boudreau (Gardiner, Maine) and Jackson Boudreau (Gardiner, Maine) will also be competing in the snowboarding National Championships.
In women's freeski slopestyle, Natalee McKenzie (Kingfield, Maine) and Tegan Andrew (Goffstown, N.H.) claimed the top two podium spots. In women's snowboard slopestyle, Avery Ver Wey (Bridgton, Maine) and Angel Brackett (Lincoln, Maine) also reached the podium, finishing second and third, respectively.
A full breakdown of the competition in Oregon will be released next week.
