M., W. Skiing Finish 11th at Williams

Although all the Harvard ski teams had a bumpy ride this weekend, Nordic phenom Anna McLoon continued to pine away at a bid for an invitation to the NCAA Championships, turning in the most impressive performance among Harvard competitors.

Both the men and women's Alpine and Nordic varsity teams took part in the EISA Skiing Williams Winter Carnival. The Alpine teams raced at Jiminy Peak and the Nordic contingent raced at Prospect Mountain. The four

teams combined for an 11th place finish with 132 points.

McLoon finished in sixth place in 45 minutes 52.5 seconds among the 50 competitors who completed the 15k freestyle technique race.

"I raced well and held my own," freshmen McLoon said. "The entire team did a great job, and everyone showed improvement."

McLoon teamed up with Julia Silvis, and Kate Damon for a 15th place finish in the 3x5-kilometer relay. McLoon's leadoff leg had placed the team in third place.

McLoon's finish accumulated 28 points toward the team's standing for the weekend and added 15 points to her NCAA standing. McLoon is currently 16th in the nation, and the top 15 performers are invited to Middlebury for the national championships in three weeks.

"Next week's carnival (at the Middlebury Snowbowl) will determine if I make it to Nationals," McLoon said. "I'm looking forward to it because I think it would be a lot of fun to race."

The men's Nordic 3x5-kilometer relay of Boris Granovsky, Smith Schleler and Ross MacDonald combined for a 17th finish in 1 hour 33.1 seconds.

In the downhill events, the Crimson found the icy terrain difficult to ski. However, Harvard had some fine personal performances.

In the men's giant slalom, Peter Gage, Bryan Bellmare and Matthew

Perone had strong performances finishing 38th, 39th and 40th,

respectively.

In the slalom, Perone finished 40th and was the Crimson's top finisher.

On the women's side, Sarah Luskin was Harvard's top finisher in the giant slalom, and Katharine Greer was the Crimson's top competitor in the slalom.

Luskin and Greer were 47th and 53rd, respectively.

"We did well given the icy conditions," said women's alpine co-captain Erin Marshall. "We're looking forward to being stronger and a

better team next weekend."

All four squads will head off to Middlebury for the Snowbowl, which begins Friday. Both the Alpine and Nordic teams wrap up their seasons in Vermont, but hopes for an NCAA birth rest on McLoon's individual performance this coming weekend.