CLUB ROUNDUP: Penn's ski teams see different degrees of success

Although club teams do not generate the same amount of notoriety varsity sports have attained, some have achieved comparable success. The men's and women's club ski teams at Penn are both having one of their best years ever. Both the men and women "A" teams had extremely strong regular seasons. Competing in the Allegheny Conference against other eastern schools such as Penn State, Bucknell and West Virginia, the men finished fourth and the women finished first. Although the teams compete together in competitions, their results are recorded separately. With a fourth-place finish equalling a bid to the Mid-Atlantic regionals, both teams moved on. But their fortunes changed there. The men finished third to qualify for nationals, while the women finished fourth, putting an end to a good season. Although the men's team did not dominate during the season, it utilized a complete team effort to move on at regionals. "Basically we earned this as a team. Unlike other teams that rely on a few skiers we won this honor together," senior Randy Balik said. By qualifying for nationals, the men's team gets a chance to compete against the best in the country. In describing its chances, co-captain Chad Sumner said "to call us an underdog is an understatement. " The six men that will be travelling are Balik, Sumner, Brandon Kronstedt, David Siegal, Aaron Abrahms and Mark Chiang. Although they do receive money from Student Activities Council, the student trip to Brudage Mountain in Idaho will be almost entirely student-funded. Balik summed up the team's fund-raising plans by saying: "if anyone wants to donate money and support the team they are more than welcome." The women thoroughly dominated the regular season, winning their side of the Allegheny Conference. Yet they had a bad performance on the first day of regionals and consequently did not move on to nationals. "The team did phenomenal in the regular season and had one bad day at the wrong time," Amy Ludvigson said. Both teams had skiers qualify for postseason honors. On the men's side, freshman Brandon Kronstedt and senior co-captain Randy Balik both received all-conference awards. For the women, Heather Gilbert, Hindi Wilding and Jen Kutsher made all-conference. This season was extremely successful for both the men's and women's teams. By achieving a good deal collectively and individually, they have set a precedent for the club ski teams to come.