The Utah ski team kicked off its season early Monday on home turf at the Utah Invitational at Park City Mountain Resort. The team walked out with decent times for the first race of the year, finishing the day in fifth place overall. This includes a strong second-place finish by Utah newcomer Julie Flo Mohagen in the women’s slalom race.
“It was a really good day,” said Mohagen. “It was a pretty easy hill, and the conditions worked really well for me.”
Though Mohagen earned a respectable place, the rest of the day showed there is still room for improvement for the Utes. Chloe Fausa was the only other top-10 finisher for the women’s team, while the men were led by Jorgen Brath, who finished 14th place in the men’s slalom.
“Honestly, it’s nice to get the season started at home,” Brath said. “But I still think we can all do better as a team, especially myself. Overall there’s small things we can improve with a little bit more training, but it’s a good start.”
Leading the way at the Utah Invitational is Denver, followed by Colorado, Westminster and Montana State, with the Utes occupying the final spot.
But with Utah being a young team compared to the other schools, Monday was sign of sure things to come for the rest of the week — including Tuesday’s races, where the men’s team will take on the giant slalom.
@chad_marquez