Sunday River, ME - A pair of winter snowstorms tightened what is normally a four-day extravaganza into two days, but the shortened schedule did little to slow down the Clarkson University Alpine Ski team at the USCSA National Championships. The Golden Knights' men's squad finished ninth in the giant slalom and seventh in the slalom for seventh-place in the combined standings, matching the third-best finish ever for Clarkson at the nationals since 1986.

Clarkson also earned the USCSA President's Cup for the top overall combined alpine/nordic finish among the USCSA's members at the national championships.

A USCSA Second-Team All-American last season, senior Kurt Naser (Arlington, MA) repeated with another fine performance, gaining the same accolade in 2008. Naser came in 18th in the giant slalom on Thursday and placing one spot lover in the slalom on Friday. Naser's finish in the giant slalom on Thursday was the best of any Clarkson skier, as the team came in ninth in the event. Sophomore Ben Cohen (Old Forge, NY) was next for the Knights, racing to a 37th-place finish, while freshman Corey VanLare (Fairport, NY) came in 60th. In the slalom, sophomore Drew Bonner (Killington, VT) enjoyed a 23rd place showing to help Clarkson to its seventh-place finish. Sophomore Nick Skowyra (St. Paul, MN) also performed well to come in 34th, as did freshman Clayton Reynolds (Rome, NY), who finished 44th, and senior Rob Reed (West Suffield, NY), who placed 84th.

On the women's side, the Golden Knights' team fell short of qualifying to the nationals, but freshman Meghan Cleason (Canandaigua, NY) participated in the event thanks to her third-place finish at the regionals two weeks ago, and came away with a 37th-place overall showing in the nationals. Cleason's best finish was in the slalom, as she came in 40th place. In the giant event, she finished 54th.