PARK CITY, UTAH – University of Alaska Anchorage skier Alyssa Hill capped off the Utah Invite with a sixth-place finish in the slalom Tuesday.
She posted a two-run time of 1:45.22.
Nicole Mah and Ashleigh Alexander finished 20th (1:48.43) and 21st (1:48.76).
"Incredible day for Alyssa," said head coach Sparky Anderson. "To be sixth in this field against athletes headed to the Olympics next month is big. It's a confidence booster. We weren't surprised of course, but there are a lot of people asking where she came from. Nicole and Ashleigh did a good job putting down quality runs, and they'll continue to get faster."
Jan Ronner led three Seawolves in the top-20 of the men's race with a 13th-place showing in 1:47.41. Olav Sanderberg was 18th (1:48.53) and Hunter Eid was 19th (1:48.85).
"Slalom can be a cruel mistress," said Anderson. "Leon is skiing lights out slalom, but a small mistake on the top pitch ended his bid for the podium early in the day. We lost about half of the men's field today, but Jan, Hunter, and Olav skied solid to fill out our top three point makers. Jan was 13th, a career best for him. The guys are battling. It's a stacked field and we're just continuing to take our shots.
"It was nice to finish the Utah Invite as a top-three team. The NCAA Championships will be held at this same venue. Looking forward, I know we have work to do, but this result provides a lot of motivation."
Utah won the Utah Invite with 648 points, followed Colorado second with 562 points and Alaska Anchorage third with 537 points.
Filip Forejtek of Colorado won the men's race in 1:43.53, and Eveline Fredricsson of Westminster won the women's race in 1:43.64.
The UAA Nordic ski team will compete in Fairbanks Feb. 1-2.
