The Forum

Issue date: 1/26/10 Section: Sports

[Click to enlarge]

[Click to enlarge]

Although the ski resorts opened in mid-October, the Westminster Ski and Snowboard team is just now entering their second season of competition. The ski and snowboard team has already established their place by continually dominating the competition and surprising their conference.

In their first season, the women's alpine ski team took the national championship last year in the USCSA Nationals, while the men's team finished third. The impressive showing in the nationals set the standard high for the upcoming winter sports season. Athletic Director Shay Wyatt hopes for another successful season, "Our second season just got underway and our coaches and student-athletes have been working hard to prepare themselves to achieve the high expectations they have set for themselves. How our teams ended up last year exceeded everyone's expectations being a first year program. Our coaches want to continue to build upon the foundation that was established last year."

The women's ski team held the top spot throughout last season and is expected to have an even stronger performance this year. Kendall Brown, a junior alpine skiier from Ontario, Canada, is expected by Coach Chris Hendrickson to excel this season after leading the team last year.

The ski and snowboard team members thrive off the competition and dedicate themselves to their sport, but have to balance the intensity of practice and competition with the demands of school. The team travels more than any other sports team at Westminster, often making it difficult to stay on top of their work and maintain their grades. Last season the team was on the road for over 30 days in a two and a half month time period. The team travels mostly across the west, specifically Colorado and Montana, to compete.

During the three month season from January to mid-March, the team is constantly traveling and doing homework on the road. Missing class during the spring semester is difficult, but the athletes all seem to have found ways to make it work. Brown said, "Balancing academics and athletics can be challenging at times, but it also forces me to work hard when I am in class. Good communication with professors and coaches enable me to perform my best in both environments."

In April 2009, 21 of the ski and snowboard student-athletes were recognized as Academic All-Americans for their outstanding performance in the classroom and on the slopes. Westminster received more All-American student-athletes than any other school in the Utah Collegiate Ski and Snowboard Association.

Hendrickson is looking forward to his second season leading the team. Prior to coaching at Westminster, Hendrickson coached the Boise State University Ski Team and was the Athletic Director for Sierra Nevada College in Incline Village, Nevada. In his 13 seasons at Sierra Nevada College, the men's ski team took the national championship for a consecutive 13 years and the women's ski team took the national championship 10 out of 13 seasons. Westminster's women's ski team beat out Sierra Nevada for first place last year.

With the success of last season, the team is working hard to maintain their title. "We want to continue to establish both our alpine and snowboard programs and offer positive experiences for those student-athletes who compete on these teams," said Wyatt. "Our coaches and student-athletes are driven to continually improve so they can achieve continued success when they compete. Our teams want to qualify for the national championships in March."

Westminster College added the ski and snowboard athletic team in the fall of 2008. It is part of the United States Collegiate Ski and Snowboard Association (USCSA), competing in the Grand Teton conference. The USCSA is comprised of 178 teams competing in snowboarding and alpine and cross-country skiing.

Page 1 of 1

Article Tools