Fort Lewis, Western State win MTB crowns
Angel Fire, N.M. (October 22, 2006)—Fort Lewis College completed its sweep of all four Division I men’s events at the 2006 USA Cycling Collegiate Mountain Bike National Championships as Chris Heath won Sunday’s downhill competition to secure the overall Division I title for Fort Lewis College – its third championship in the last four years. Fort Lewis College earned a total of 698 points to edge defending champion University of Colorado by 25 points. After the men’s squad won the short track and 4-cross events Friday and the cross country race Saturday, Heath clocked a winning time of 5 minutes, 8.06 seconds as the fastest man down the mountain to earn an individual downhill title and solidify an overall win for Fort Lewis. And because a school’s overall point tally included both men’s and women’s events, a third-place effort from Sarah Elworthy in the Division I women’s downhill race also factored heavily into Fort Lewis’ overall win.
Western State College won the overall Division II crown with 655 points to Warren Wilson College’s 632. Amy Scherm notched valuable points for the Gunnison-based school in the women’s downhill race to give Colorado institutions a sweep of the team titles.
This Article Published 2006-10-22 21:35:14 For more information contact: alee@usacycling.org
Along with Fort Lewis College and Western State College earning team honors, four individual overall champions were also crowned Sunday as points from the weekend’s four events – short track cross country, 4-cross, cross country and downhill – were added together to name a men’s and women’s champion from each division. With a victory in both the short track and cross country events, Alex Hagman (Fort Lewis College) earned the overall Division I men’s title. The Division I women’s title went to Caroline Jarolimek (University of Colorado), who despite not winning any individual events, captured the overall title. Jarolimek’s top result was a second-place effort in the 4-cross race but a sixth-place finish in the cross country event and a pair of eighth-place finishes in the short track and downhill races gave her enough points to secure the win. Douglas Shryock (University of Montana) claimed the Division II men’s championship after solid performances in the endurance events left him with a third-place result in the short track race and an eighth-place finish in the cross country race. An 18th-place finish in the 4-cross race and a 21st-place finish in the downhill contest insured Shyrock’s victory. Kate Chapman (Western State College) took home the stars-and-stripes jersey in the Division II women’s overall classification. The talented all-arounder won the 4-cross race and placed fourth in the short track, fifth in the cross country and fifth in the downhill.
In the weekend’s final race, individual event titles were awarded in the downhill competition as Heath and Scherm were joined by Leana Gerrard (Western Washington University) and Anthony Coneski (University of Montana) as national champions. Gerrard won the Division I women’s crown after ticking off a 6:39.54 while Coneski turned in a 5:39.66. Sunday’s downhill victories were the second of the weekend for both Gerrard and Coneski who each won their respective 4-cross races Friday.
With the focus on team accolades, Fort Lewis College’s Division I title was a result of several key performances that included 11 visits to the podium. The Durango-based school started quickly with six podium performances Friday as Hagman, Eric Ransom and Noah Singer swept the top three of the men’s short track race, Thomas Tokarczyk and Heath went 1-2 in the men’s 4-cross and Sabrina Kraushaar placed third in the women’s 4-cross. The success continued Saturday as Hagman and Singer placed first and fifth respectively in the men’s cross country race. Sunday, Heath’s win and Elworthy’s bronze-medal descent was complimented by a fifth-place finish courtesy of Anthony Diaz.
Western College secured the Division II crown with nine visits to the podium. Friday, Chapman’s 4-cross win and fourth-place effort in the women’s short track was complemented by a win the men’s short track by Garret Brady, a third-place finish by Scherm in the women’s 4-cross and a fourth-place finish by Philip Chilimindris in the men’s 4-cross. After Chapman’s fifth-place finish was the only podium performance Saturday, Western College finished strong with Scherm’s win and fourth and fifth-place finishes in the men’s downhill from Timothy Ruggles and Alex Prouty.
The top-five Division I schools were Fort Lewis College (698), University of Colorado (673), Lees-McRae College (573), Colorado State University (547) and Lindsey Wilson College (473). After winning the last three Division II crowns, Lees-McRae joined the Division I ranks in 2006 as did Western Washington University who finished 12th with 259 points.
Western State College (655), Warren Wilson College (632), University of Montana (631), Union College (576) and Colorado School of Mines (567) topped the Division II standings.
2006 USA Cycling Collegiate Mountain Bike National Championships
Angel Fire, N.M.
October 20-22
Day Three Results
Men’s Division I Downhill
1. Chris Heath (Fort Lewis College)
2. Philip Wheeler (University of Colorado)
3. Jason Codding (University of Florida)
4. Tim Sharp (University of Colorado)
5. Anthony Diaz (Fort Lewis College)
Women’s Division I Downhill
1. Leana Gerrard (Western Washington University)
2. Jessica Vogt (University of Colorado)
3. Sarah Elworthy (Fort Lewis College)
4. Karin Hanzi (Cal Poly Wheelman)
5. Danae York (University of Colorado)
Men’s Division II Downhill
1. Anthony Coneski (University of Montana)
2. Jess Pedersen (Colorado School of Mines)
3. Nick Zuzelski (Colorado School of Mines)
4. Timothy Ruggles (Western State College)
5. Alex Prouty (Western State College)
Women’s Division II Downhill
1. Amy Scherm (Western State College)
2. Nylene Wicks (University of Montana)
3. Katelyn Parhiala (St. Michael’s College)
4. Heidi Caskill (University of Montana)
5. Kate Champan (Western State College)
Men’s Division I Overall Omnium
1. Alex Hagman (Ft. Lewis College) 340
2. Andy Schultz (Montana State University) 300
3. Eric Ransom (Fort Lewis College) 280
4. Noah Singer (Fort Lewis College) 278
5. Bryan Alders (University of Colorado) 268
Women’s Division I Overall Omnium
1. Caroline Jarolimek (University of Colorado) 458
2. Sabrina Kraushaar (Fort Lewis College) 400
3. Chloe Forsman (University of Arizona) 395
4. Danae York (University of Colorado) 353
5. Maureen Kunz (UC-Berkeley) 334
Men’s Division II Overall Omnium
1. Douglas Shryock (University of Montana) 326
2. Phil Grove University of Montana) 316
3. Patrick Hurley (Warren Wilson College) 312
4. Braden Kappius (Colorado School of Mines) 304
5. Toby Meierbachtol (University of Montana) 302
Women’s Division II Overall Omnium
1. Kate Chapman (Western State College) 518
2. Amy Scherm (Western State College) 482
3. Amanda McKay (Union College) 468
4. Nylene Wicks (University of Montana) 434
5. Kylie Krauss (Warren Wilson College) 422
Overall Division I Standings
1. Fort Lewis College 698
2. University of Colorado 673
3. Lees-McRae College 573
4. Colorado State University 547
5. Lindsey Wilson College 473
Overall Division II Standings
1. Western State College 655
2. Warren Wilson College 632
3. University of Montana 631
4. Union College 576
5. Colorado School of Mines 567
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