CHARLEMONT — Corriann Delaney, of Frontier Regional, finished the giant slalom at Berkshire East in 34.17 seconds to claim first place in the final PVIAC alpine race of the regular season, Tuesday.
Ellie Mahoney, of Northampton, placed fifth (26.20) and Abby Denhart, of Northampton, placed seventh (26.42). Sarah Fardal, of Pioneer Valley Chinese Immersion Charter School, placed eighth (26.50).
On the boys side, Nate Jones, of Northampton, placed second (35.63) in the slalom and Nico Christakos, of Amherst Regional, placed third (35.79). Dawson Kelly, of Gateway Regional, placed fifth (38.43). Benjamin DeLaCour, of Northampton finished ninth (40.08) and Ryan Ames, of Gateway Regional, placed 10th (40.28).
Jack Masciadrelli, of St. Mary’s, placed first in 37.17.
The Northampton girls team took first in the North Division with a combined time of 109.37 seconds. Frontier placed fourth (123.97).
Hampshire Regional placed second (122.34) in the South while PVCICS placed fourth (125.25). Amherst was fifth (130.83). East Longmeadow took first (115.47).
The Gateway Regional boys team placed third (175.63) in the North, while Northampton was fourth (177.50). Amherst was sixth (190.51).
PVCICS placed third (195.83) in the South. Hampshire was fifth (204.92)
Delaney’s first-place finish on Tuesday was her first of the season. Through the season’s first six races, the senior placed second five times and third once.
The senior felt the conditions on the course were ideal.
“It got down to the ice, which is really nice,” Delaney said. “The course held up really good.”
A change in strategy, plus her familiarity with the course, spurred Mahoney to her fifth-place finish.
“I tried to have a strong start this time and I think I did, for myself at least,” Mahoney said. “I tried to tuck a lot more than I normally do. … That was, I think, the best I’ve done this year.”
The icy conditions on the giant slalom course helped skiers pick up speed, but it was a detriment to those completing in the slalom.
“It wasn’t the best conditions. … I just tried to ski smoothly, especially on the pitch,” Jones said. “I just tried to ski clean and be smooth on my edges. That helped me out.”
Top-10 finishes from Jones and DeLaCour helped Northampton secure the North Division championship.
“It’s been a great team effort all year getting as many people as we can into the top 10 and 15,” Jones said. “It’s been a good season.”
Christakos finished the regular season in first place in the North Division for his first individual title. He was pleased with where he placed Tuesday, but Christakos felt like he left time out on the course in some areas.
“The flats toward the bottom, I don’t think I went as hard as I could have,” Christakos said. “I had a couple of mistakes right before the pitch. I think I skied the pitch really well though. That’s a good takeaway.”
Moving into the PVIAC individual championship at Berkshire East next Tuesday, Christakos hopes to build on his regular season success.
“I skied well when I didn’t make mistakes today,” Christakos said. “I think I can hammer out two perfect runs. I think that will put me in first.”
