ANDOVER, N.H. – Junior Mathilde Nelles (Malmedy, Belgium) led the Plymouth State University women's alpine ski team with a second place finish in the first of a pair of Eastern Intercollegiate Ski Association (EISA) slalom races at the Boston College Carnival at Proctor Ski Area on Saturday.
 
Nelles narrowly missed out on the top spot of the podium, trailing the race leader by just 0.04 seconds.
 
As a team the Panthers finished third in the first race, while placing fifth in the second. The races marked the end of the carnival season for Plymouth State, as well as the final carnival for senior Gigi Quimby (Pepperell, Mass.).
 
PSU now looks forward to the NCAA's selection of competitors for the 2021 National Collegiate Skiing Championships set for next week at the Panthers' training site on Mittersill at Cannon Mountain in Franconia. Selections will be announced on Tuesday (Mar. 2) on NCAA.com.
 
The Basics:

• BC Alpine Carnival (Women's SL – Race One)
  • Highest finish: Second (Nelles)
  • Top-10 finishes: One (Nelles)

• BC Alpine Carnival (Women's SL – Race Two)
  • Highest finish: 17th (Olmo)
  • Top-10 finishes: None

Team Scores:

• BC Alpine Carnival (Women's SL – Race One)
  • UVM (133), UNH (113), Plymouth State (98), St. Lawrence (89), Boston College (89)

• BC Alpine Carnival (Women's SL – Race Two)
  • UVM (138), UNH (120), Boston College (97), St. Lawrence (89), Plymouth State (78)

How it Happened (Race One):

• Nelles trailed the leader by 0.04 after a time of 45.16 in her opening run. The two racers finished with identical 46.88 times in run two, giving Nelles her second place finish with an overall time of 1:32.04.
• Sophomore Carmela Olmo (Val D'Aran, Spain) sat in 21st after her first run of 48.56 and moved up two slots to finish 19th in 1:38.61.
• Quimby took 21st in 1:39.36, just ahead of junior Rachel Smith (Stowe, Vt.), who ended up 22nd in 1:39.91.
• Sophomore Zoe Simpson (Portland, Ore.) placed 26th in 1:41.72, while classmate Sierra Price (Franconia, N.H.) was unable to complete her second run.

How it Happened (Race Two):

• Nelles was again near the top of the standings after the opening run as her time of 47.70 was the third fastest, but she could not finish her second run.
• Olmo (50.39) and Quimby (50.64) were in 18th and 20th, with Smith (51.26) sitting 23rd. Olmo and Quimby both moved up with strong second runs. Olmo ended up in 17th with a total time of 1:43.90, while Quimby was 18th in 1:45.12, but Smith could not complete her second run.
• Simpson wrapped up the race in 21st in 1:49.42, with Price taking 25th with a time of 1:52.07.

Up Next:

• The race marked the completion of the carnival season for Plymouth State. Qualifiers for the 2021 National Collegiate Skiing Championship will be announced Tuesday (Mar. 2) afternoon on NCAA.com.