Traveling to Copper and Frisco for their respective state competitions, the Steamboat Springs High School Alpine and Nordic teams earned top results across the board on Thursday, Feb. 16, and Friday, Feb. 17. 

While the teams compete separately, overall team scoring combines the results of the Alpine and Nordic teams, earning the Steamboat Springs girls ski team third and the boys fourth.

On the hill at Copper Mountain Resort, the boys Alpine team was led by senior Colin Kagan, who won the giant slalom and slalom races. He was an integral piece in helping the Steamboat boys be the top giant slalom team.

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The girls were the second best slalom and giant slalom teams on the back of young guns Emma McHaffie and Kinsley Jacobson. McHaffie, a sophomore, would go on to win the slalom race with Jacobson, a freshman, not far behind in fifth. 

Steamboat Alpine head coach Ryan Seyedian said that while the team is normally better suited to the slalom races, there was one spot on the hill that was taking out a lot of racers from all teams. It took until the very end for the boys team to get its third scorer, Wyatt Graves, and take the bronze medal. 

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“Everybody skied really well, and it was a very challenging course at Copper Mountain,” Seyedian said. “Thursday was a super cold day, but our kids skied really well and they exceeded my expectations in giant slalom for sure.”

Erik Sandvik, a senior captain on the Alpine team, credits a lot of the success to the culture Seyedian promotes within the group. Sandvik said they always stay positive and have a good time while focusing up on race days. 

Sandvik earned eighth overall in the slalom race, his best finish at state. He said this is the most successful high school team he has ever been a part of. 

“With high school, it matters how your teammates do, and you want to cheer them on to do well because you’re a team and you compete as a team,” Sandvik said. “I think it’s a really unique part of high school skiing that you can’t find anywhere else.”

Competing at the Frisco Nordic Center, Steamboat’s Nordic team also posted top results with the girls taking third in the 5-kilometer classic race and fifth in the 5-kilometer skate. 

Steamboat’s top finishers were freshman Dixie Barnes, taking sixth in the classic race, and senior captain Wren Capra, who was seventh in both the classic and skate races. 

For the boys, senior Griffin Rillos led the charge, taking third in the classic race and second in the skate race, to help bring the Sailors a fifth and sixth place finish in the two competitions.

“For us to come in this year and win this many awards and accomplishments, I think it really says a lot about the group that we have,” Seyedian said. “We have an awesome group of seniors that have put in the work over the years, and it’s not just what we did this year, it’s really a culmination of all the work they have done in their lives.”

Colorado High School Activities Association State Skiing Championships

Feb. 16-17|
Overall team results
Girls team points: 1. Battle Mountain, 620. 2. Middle Park, 606. 3. Steamboat Springs, 605. 4. Aspen, 601. 5. Summit, 597. 
Boys team points: 1. Summit, 624. 2. Battle Mountain, 604. 3. Middle Park, 600. 4. Steamboat Springs, 588. 5. Nederland, 428.
Steamboat Springs Alpine
Boys giant slalom: 1. Colin Kagan, 1:38.01. 2. Brooks Overstake, 1:40.51. 7. Fisher St. John, 1:42.79.
Girls giant slalom: 10. Emma McHaffie, 1:52.03. 11. Kinsley Jacobson, 1:52.36. 15. Audra Gowdy, 1:54.85.
Boys slalom: 1. Colin Kagan, 1:33.16. 8. Erik Sandvik, 1:43.28. 24. Wyatt Graves, 1:59.15.
Girls slalom: 1. Emma McHaffie, 1:45.74. 5. Kinsley Jacobson, 1:53.18. 17. Audra Gowdy, 1:58.07. 
Steamboat Springs Nordic
Boys classic: 3. Griffin Rillos, 16:52.9. 26. Connor Frithsen, 19:08.1. 46. Thomas Reilley, 20:22.9.
Girls classic: 6. Dixie Barnes, 21:31.3. 7. Wren Capra, 21:44.2. 23. Autumn Oslowski, 23:13.3.
Boys skate: 2. Griffin Rillos, 15:21.0. 32. Connor Frithsen, 17:51.3. 45. Thomas Reilley, 18:40.6.
Girls skate: 7. Wren Capra, 19:32.6. 19. Dixie Barnes, 21:03.2. 23. Autumn Oslowski, 21:20.9.

To reach Tom Skulski, call 970-871-4240, email tskulski@SteamboatPilot.com.