Colorado sweeps Collegiate team titles
Colorado University, dominating the men’s team competition for the third straight year, also made it a sweep of the men’s, women’s and combined team competitions at the USA Triathlon Collegiate Nationals Saturday in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
While Colorado’s Karl Kahsar fell one spot and 26 seconds short of repeating as the individual national champion, nonetheless he led the Buffalo men to a dominating 98-point margin of victory with a second place finish. Kahsar was followed by Drew Scott, 5th, Chris Braden, 6th, and the fourth scoring member of the Buffaloes who placed 14th.
The CU men’s team total was 25 points, which fell just two points short of the Collegiate Nationals men’s team record of 23 points set by Colorado last year.
The University of Arizona, led by 3rd place men’s individual finisher Benjamin Kanute, took second with 123 points, and the U.S. Military Academy took the final spot on the men’s team podium with a total of 149 points – accomplished without one man in the top 10 of the individual rankings.
The Colorado women had a much closer margin, scoring 75 points to edge the Duke Blue Devils by 6 points. Colorado did it with consistency, as none of the Buffalo women placed in the top 10 in individual standings. Duke was led by Jenny Shaughnessy, who finished 2nd in the individual category, and Chelsea Koglmeier, who finished 8th. The University of California-Berkeley women, led by Christine Farson’s 4th and Erika Erickson’s 6th place finishes, took third in the women’s team competition with a total of 103 points – just one point ahead of 4th place U.S. Naval Academy.
With Colorado men’s and women’s teams taking top honors, the combined team title was a lock. Colorado’s 100 points topped 2nd place U.S. Naval Academy by 159 points and California University-Berkeley was just 8 points back of Navy in third.
In a new event, the University of California-Berkeley Relay A squad took the mixed relay team title in 1:26:33. Stanford Relay A took 2nd in 1:28:40, with the Mountain Collegiate Conference placing 3rd in 1:29:27.
Overall Team Standings
1. Colorado University-Boulder, 100
2. U.S. Naval Academy, 259
3. University of California- Berkeley, 267
4. U.S. Military Academy, 356
5. UCLA, 376
Women's Team Standings
1. Colorado University-Boulder, 75
2. Duke, 81
3. University of California- Berkeley, 103
4. U.S. Naval Academy, 104
5. UCLA, 129
Men's Team Standings
1. Colorado University- Boulder, 25 -2-5-6-14
2. University of Arizona, 123
3. U.S. Military Academy, 149
4. U.S. Naval Academy, 155
5. University of California-Berkeley,164
Mixed Team Relay
1. University of California-Berkeley Relay A, 1:26:33
2. Stanford Relay A, 1:28:40
3. Mountain Collegiate Conference, 1:29:27
4. South Midwest Collegiate Conference, 1:29:59
5. University of Arizona, 1:30:42
