The Great Debate |
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Who will have the most successful season? |
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Gymnastics will be team to match |
Overlooked ski team best of the bunch |
 The most successful Utah team for more than 35 years, the Utes reached a low point last season as they finished ninth in the country, Utah’s worst final result since 1977.Despite the dip, Greg and Megan Marsden have helped the Utes develop a reputation as one of the premier programs in the country and the head coaching duo will guide their team back to Super Six in 2014. When all is said and done, the gymnastics squad will end up being the most successful Utah team this season. First, this team has great individual talent. In the 2013 season, the Utes had three gymnasts receive first team All-Pac-12 honors. Sophomores Georgia Dabritz and Tory Wilson earned it as all-arounders and fellow sophomore Becky Tutka achieved it in floor exercise. Two more Utah gymnasts were named second team all-conference in their respective events, Mary Beth Lofgren on balance beam and Nansy Damianova in floor exercise. Both were just juniors. In fact, not a single athlete was a senior in 2013, which means that Utah has its entire roster returning this coming year. A total of six gymnasts from that squad were named NCAA All-Americans. Much of the reason the Utes struggled a season ago can be attributed to the bite by the injury bug. Kailah Delaney, who was outstanding on vault as a freshman in 2012, missed the entire season. Additionally, team leader Corrie Lothrop got hurt in February and missed the rest of the campaign. By adding those two back into a mix that’s already full of All-Americans, Utah is primed for success in 2014. Even with the great talent on the squad, gymnasts still need strong coaches to succeed, and the Marsdens will be back for yet another try at a national title. It would be Greg Marsden’s 11th. If anything, the painful finish from last season will be a great source of motivation for coaches to use. Greg Marsden has already said that the team will focus early this season on becoming more consistent on the balance beam. A season ago, that event was Utah’s Achilles’ heel throughout the year and two falls on the apparatus in the national semifinal meet are what ultimately doomed the Utes’ chances of making the Super Six. After establishing itself as the program to beat in the 1980s, Utah has not won a national title since 1995. It has all the ingredients in place to get back atop the podium in 2014, which would make it the best Ute team this season. |
 Utah is home to the greatest snow on earth, so it should come as no surprise that some of the greatest collegiate skiers on earth come to Salt Lake City for school. The Utah ski team consistently cultivates a crop of world-class athletes from all over the globe and grooms them for championship-caliber performances year in and year out.This year is going to be no different. With returning athletes from eight countries, many of whom have World Cup experience, the Utes will be in prime position to claim an NCAA title in 2014, which would be the 12th in their storied history. The Utah ski team often gets overlooked as one of the most athletically gifted programs at the U, partially due to their lack of a 10,000-seat capacity stadium like the Huntsman Center for fans to come and revel in their prowess. However, fans will have a chance in 2014 to see them perform on a grand scale. Utah will play host to the NCAA Men’s and Women’s Skiing Championships next year, which will be a big-time advantage in the Utes’ quest for the title. Park City Mountain Resort will be the home of the Alpine championships and Soldier Hollow Resort will host the Nordic races. Both locations are the most familiar terrain for the Utes as they practice at each on a regular basis. Simply knowing every nuance of every turn and the perfect wax combination for the type of snow that the Wasatch lies under is enough to give Utah a meticulously grinded edge over the competition. The Utes will be seeking their first championship on home turf since 1981. The task won’t be easy, as Utah is faced with the challenge of losing its top performers from last season in Miles Havlick, Einar Uslund and Rose Kemp, but director of skiing Kevin Sweeney gave particular praise to his underclassmen last season after the Utes took second in the country. These underclassmen will be looking to fill the shoes of the three graduated seniors. After tasting silver last year, Sweeney and his team will certainly have a thirst for gold on their own mountain in 2014. Each athlete from the 2013 team will continue to develop their abilities under the supervision and advice of some of the best coaches in the sport. Head Nordic coach Abi Holt is a three-time junior national champion, Jaka Korencan was named the 2012 Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Ski Association Coach of the Year and his assistant, Will McDonald, was the top slalom skier in his age group as a teenager. So yeah, these coaches know how to ski fast and win. They also know how to develop young athletes into champions and this year they’re going to prove it. En route to a national title, the Utah ski team will be the best Ute squad this season. |
The Great Debate: Who will have the most successful season?
August 1, 2013