HANCOCK, Mass. – Freshmen Axel Hafsett (Lausanne, Switzerland) and Hjalmar Nyman (Stockholm, Sweden) both placed within the top 15 for the men, while sophomore Olivia Andersson (Vaxholm, Sweden) finished 14th for the women to lead the Plymouth State University alpine ski teams in the giant slalom at the Williams Carnival at Jiminy Peak Mountain Resort on Friday.
 
Hafsett and Nyman used big second runs to secure career-best finishes. The pair ranked 21st and 30th, respectively, after the morning run, but posted top-10 second runs to surge up the leaderboard. Nyman was the fifth-fastest in the afternoon, while Hafsett recorded the ninth-fastest time to climb into 12th and 14th, respectively.
 
Andersson did her heavy lifting in the morning, posting the 13th-fastest first run. She followed with another solid performance in the afternoon to finish 14th overall, her third straight top-15 finish in the GS.
 
The men placed sixth as a team, while the women finished 10th.
 
 
The Basics:

• Williams Carnival (Men's GS)
  • Highest finish: 12th (Hafsett)
  • Team finish: 6th
• Williams Carnival (Women's GS)
  • Highest finish: 14th (Andersson)
  • Team finish: 10th

 
How it Happened (Men's GS):

• Hafsett continued his recent string of strong skiing, leading the men after the morning run with a time of 45.39 seconds left placed him 21st. He delivered in the second run, covering the course in 47.60 seconds – the ninth-fastest of the afternoon – to surge into 12th overall with a combined time of 1:32.99.
• Nyman was close behind in the morning, posting a 45.67 to rank 30th. His second run was even more impressive, finishing in 47.41 seconds – the fifth-fastest of the afternoon and roughly 0.25 seconds behind the leader. The performance vaulted him into 14th overall with a combined time of 1:33.08.
• Freshman Charlie Howe (Lake Placid, N.Y.) sat 44th after his first run of 45.97, while senior Vincent Fosser (Helsingborg, Sweden) was 54th in 46.38.
• Fosser posted a 49.35 in the afternoon to finish 40th – 23 spots ahead of his No. 63 bib. Howe did not finish his second run.
• Freshman Emile Prouvost (Charleston, S.C.) recorded a morning time of 46.55 to rank 57th, while junior Angus Somers (Ottawa, Ontario) just missed the cut after a first run of 46.65. Prouvost also did not finish in the afternoon.
• Sophomore Alvin Guteland Beiming (Södertälje, Sweden) did not finish his first run.

How it Happened (Women's GS):

• Andersson impressed in her opening run with a time of 46.36 seconds to rank 13th. She followed with a 50.12 in the afternoon to finish 14th overall in 1:36.48. She has now posted three straight top-15 GS finishes.
• PSU's next four skiers finished separated by just 0.73 seconds. Freshman Märta Hahlin (Arvidsjaur, Sweden) led the group in 43rd with a combined time of 1:40.54.
• Sophomore Megan Heckey (Québec City, Québec), freshman Deavyn Parchewsky (Calgary, Alberta), and senior Gill Hamilton (Ottawa, Ontario) placed 45th, 46th, and 47th in 1:40.91, 1:40.92, and 1:41.27, respectively.
• Sophomore Marlene Sophie Krohn (Drammen, Norway) was 50th after her morning run of 49.19 seconds before finishing 52nd overall in 1:42.26.
• Sophomores Laurence Bouchard (Québec City, Québec) was unable to complete her first run.

 
Up Next:

• The Panthers return for the slalom on Saturday (Feb. 14).