Lobos Fifth After Opening Race in Utah
Utah Invitational Women’s Giant Slalom
PARK CITY, Utah — UNM got a top 10 finish from Rebecca Fiegl and three top 10s overall as the Lobos overcame a tough course that saw eight DNFs, including one to UNM’s top giant slalom racer Katharine Irwin, to finish the opening race of the Utah Invitational in fifth place, just four points out of third.
Fiegl’s seventh-place finish marked her fourth straight top 20 finish, and her third top 10 overall. Fiegl picked up a team-best 25 points on the day for UNM, which scored 55 overall, a point ahead of Alaska Anchorage and 1.5 points behind Montana State in a very tight leaderboard through the opening event. UNM is just four points out of third place, behind Montana State. Denver easily won the women’s giant slalom with 107 points, netting three top five finishing including first and second, while Utah is second with 64.5 points.
Fiegl’s top 10 finish was needed as Katharine Irwin, who won the giant slalom in last week’s Montana State Invitational, didn’t finish her opening run. However, after leading her teammates last week, her teammates picked her up this time. Haley Cutler finished 14th, scoring 17 points, and Alexandra Sjöström had her best finish of the season, coming in 18th. That marked her fifth career top 20 finish, and she scored 13 points.
The women’s team now gets a day off while the men take center stage on Friday in the giant slalom. Both teams will resume action on Friday in the slalom.
NOTES: Fiegl has now completed all eight runs this season … Fiegl’s 25 points give her a team-leading 76 points on the season.