Dartmouth won all four downhill disciplines at the Williams College Carnival, but it wasn't enough as the Big Green finished second to Vermont in team scoring for yet another week, 780-746.
The men outscored UVM in the alpine disciplines, and were only two points behind UVM in the men's overall scoring.
David Viele '98 finally beat St. Lawrence star Thomas Vonn to win the men's giant slalom at the Williams Carnival, while Andrew Pennock '99 took home his first carnival win ever in the men's slalom.
On the female side, Gusty Swift '01 reached an apex by winning the women's giant slalom in what is only her fifth carnival race, and Jen Collins '99 steamed through the gates of the Jiminy Peak slalom course to victory, her first slalom win of the season.
Scott McArt '01 had his best finish of the season, placing third in the men's 10-kilometer freestyle race. Despite McArt's effort, the performance of the cross-country team was disappointing on the whole, however.
In the giant slalom race at Jiminy Peak, Viele pushed his limits and finally surpassed his biggest rival, Thomas Vonn of St. Lawrence University. Christian Chedel of UVM was third. Pennock finished seventh, and Jeremy Joseph '00 was ninth.
Viele said that his confidence is soaring as result of his achievements. He "pushed the limits" in the poor race conditions and achieved his goals. The snow was soft, and fog shrouded the course, making for a tricky race. Viele's knee injury last year occurred on a foggy race course, so there was reason to believe that he could have been tentative in poor race conditions. This weekend's success proved that he can put the past behind him and race with reckless abandon.
Men's coach Peter Dodge explained that run order matters significantly in soft snow, for the course gets slow very quickly as ruts develop.
Pennock took advantage of the number-one start position in the first run and established a one-and-a-half second lead heading into the second run. No other racer could match his speed through the course, and the lead he amassed in the first run was more than enough for him walk away with the win. Viele, Joseph and Maciej Zwiejski '00 finished fourth, fifth and sixth, giving Dartmouth the team win over Vermont in the men's alpine scoring.
Freshman phenom Swift skied strongly in the women's giant slalom on Friday, strongly enough, in fact, to leave the competition nearly a second and a half behind. Her combined time bested the field by a remarkable 1.36 seconds.
In the slalom on Saturday, Collins showed that her injured wrist could not slow her down as she skied to victory. She won the first run, and had the second fastest time on the second, which was enough to seal the victory.
In Friday's 10-K freestyle race, Barb Jones '99 was the Big Green's best female finisher, coming in about 45 seconds behind the winner, Tessa Benoit of UVM. UVM skiers were also third and fourth.
UVM skiers dominated Saturday's classical pursuit race as well, taking three of the top four positions. The performance of the women on the trails of Prospect Mountain was a disappointment after last weekend's victory at the Dartmouth Carnival.
McArt led the Big Green in the men's 10-K freestyle and finished less than a minute behind UVM's Thorodd Bakken. McArt was sandwiched in the results by two skiers from Middlebury and two from UVM. Despite the significant accomplishment of the alpine men, UVM walked away the team leader for the fifth time.
Men's captain Viele remarked on the alpine success. "It was good to finally give UVM a butt-kicking ... I think we will continue to pound on them," he said.
Next weekend, Dartmouth will be challenged by non-league skiers at the Eastern Championships at Middlebury College. The EC races will provide the one chance for some skiers to qualify for the NCAA Individual and Team Championships at Montana State University in March.
