Stratton Mountain, VT – Joe Discoe bested teammate Jeremy Cota on Sunday to win the Sprint U.S. Freestyle Championship dual moguls event. Eliza Outtrim topped the women’s standings, beating Heather McPhie.nSunny skies marked the final day of competition at Stratton Mountain. The men’s side saw Cota, of Carrabassett Valley, Maine, blast past the competition on his way to the finals. Telluride, Colo.’s Discoe scrapped his way to the finals with back-to-back 18-17 wins in the quarterfinals and semifinals. However, it was all Discoe in the finals, winning with a convincing 21-14 score. Joining Discoe and Cota on the podium was the consolation final winner Zak Watkins of Telluride.
For Discoe, who was the 2010 U.S. moguls champ, Sunday’s win marked his first dual moguls U.S. title.
“It was a great day. I’m pretty stoked,” said Discoe. “I skied to have fun, and just laid down the run I knew I had.”
The women’s final, between Steamboat Springs, Colo.’s Outtrim and McPhie, of Bozeman, Mont., was a real barnburner, with Outtrim just edging her way past McPhie 18-17 to win the U.S. title. Heidi Kloser, of Vail, Colo., made her first career podium at U.S. Championships, finishing in third. Sunday’s victory was Outtrim’s first U.S. Championship title.
“I felt unsatisfied that I had not been on the podium yet this season, so I used that to motivate me,” said Outtrim. “It was really cool, because I grew up skiing 20 minutes from here. It felt like skiing on home turf.”
“Everybody did a great job,” said U.S. Freestyle Ski Team Coach Scott Rawles about the 2010-11 season. “I think we are on the right track for good things in the next couple of years.”
World Cup overall and moguls champion Hannah Kearney did not start in Sunday’s competition. Kearney ended the season with a total of 10 wins including nine World Cup wins and a U.S. Championship.
With the Sprint U.S. Freestyle Championships in the record books, the competition season comes to a close. The U.S. Freestyle Ski Team will take a short break with training and summer camps picking back up in late April, early May.
OFFICIAL RESULTS
Sprint U.S. Freestyle Championships
Stratton Mountain, VT – March 27, 2011
Dual Moguls
Men
1. Joe Discoe, Telluride, CO
2. Jeremy Cota, Carrabassett Valley, ME
3. Zak Watkins, Telluride, CO
Women
1. Eliza Outtrim, Steamboat Springs, CO
2. Heather McPhie, Bozeman, MT
3. Heidi Kloser, Vail, CO