Hancock, Mass. - The Williams carnival kicked off on Friday with the Slalom portion. While GS would usually be raced first, poor weather forecasted for Friday meant the decision was made to run Slalom first. So, the 13 teams of the EISA conference returned to Jiminy Peak for the first time since 2020 for a rainy day slalom.
Despite extremely warm temperatures and rain that was off and on throughout the day, a salting of the hill made a somewhat hard surface. The men got the action underway, with
Tucker Strauch leading the team in 19th. Also in the flip 30 and making his carnival debut was Freshmen
Topher Davenport, who finished the first run in 26th. The third Mule was
Brooks Reed in 33rd, who continues to show remarkable speed.
Similar to the Harvard carnival, margins were close, particularly around the flip 30. 17th to 30th place was split by only .83. Athletes had to charge hard out of the gate and on the top flat section before making a strong adjustment as the hill rolled over.
The women were up next, and after falls from the Mule's top two seeded skiers, it was up to the others to put it together.
Ella Spear was up to the task; she finished in 19th after the first run. Behind her was
Meagan Olsen in 25th and
Molly Mueller in 27th.
As the rain continued to fall throughout the day, the Mules were forced to show their grit. Strauch moved up slightly to 18th, but the story of the day was Davenport, who finished third on the second run to finish 15th on the day. The result is remarkable for his first carnival start in a talented, international field. Reed also skied a stellar second run to get inside the points in 26th.
An unfortunate mistake from Mueller moved her to 32nd, but Olsen was able to move up to 24th, and Spear hung on for 27th.
The Mules will look to rebound tomorrow with the GS race. They have had far more success in GS this season, including multiple Mules with the opportunity to qualify for NCAA Championships tomorrow. The surface is also predicted to harden up overnight as temperatures cool off on a surface with plenty of moisture in it.
WOMEN'S RESULTS (PDF)
MEN'S RESULTS (PDF)
