Clarkson University followed in second place and Western Colorado University was third. On the women’s side, St. Olaf College won their second team national championship of the week, followed by University of Wisconsin-Madison in second and Paul Smith’s College in third.

The second day of the week-long annual USCSA National Championships on Wednesday featured a men’s snowboard and freeski rail jam, women’s skier and snowboard cross, men’s Alpine giant slalom and a classic Nordic sprint race in rainy weather.

In the second day of alpine ski competition, the men kicked off their races with giant slalom on Wednesday. The morning weather left the race arena in a cloud of rain and fog making for low visibility and a variable course surface. There was a 45 minute weather delay before the end of the first run delayed the schedule of the events and eventually caused the cancellation of the second run. More than 140 athletes started the first run.

Lorenzo Mencaccini from Vermont State University Castleton led the field after a firing opening act, leading by 1.58 seconds. Rocky Mountain College’s Fredrik August Straume followed in second place and Ethan Rodd from St. Olaf College sat in third place.

Athletes compete in the USCSA national championship for women’s skier cross at Whiteface Mountain on Wednesday. (Provided photo — John DiGiacomo)

Without a second run, the Castleton athletes earned back to back giant slalom national championships after Emilie Stene placed first in the women’s race on Tuesday. The Castleton men’s team took home the team national championship title for the day.

“The rain, poor visibility and the course conditions due to the warm temps definitely posed a challenge to all athletes today,” Vermont State University Castleton’s Head Coach Chris Eder said. “We knew that it would be a difficult challenge and came up with a game plan the night before. Our guys were determined to put their individual goals aside and get to the finish for the betterment of the team. They executed that plan beautifully and really worked well together as a team. I am so proud of them for how they handled the day. We have to thank all the volunteers, the folks from NYSEF and everyone from USCSA who worked their tails off to make this race possible.”

The women’s Alpine athletes competed on Thursday in the slalom race.