FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

BATES ALPINE SKIERS NAMED ATHLETES OF THE WEEK

LEWISTON, Maine -- Alpine skiers Kim Rogers of Charlestown, Mass., and Jaime Berrian and Kyle Hildebrand of Waitsfield, Vt., are Bates College Athletes of the Week, Jan. 22, for their performances at the season opening St. Lawrence University carnival in Lake Placid, N.Y.

Berrian, a sophomore, and Rogers, a first-year skier, helped the Bobcats to a three-way tie for first place in the women's giant slalom, marking the first time since they started competing in NCAA Division I that a Bates ski team has placed first in a single event. Berrian finished fourth in the event with a two-run time of 2:42.54, while Rogers was right behind in fifth with a time of 2:42.64. Rogers posted the second-fastest time in the opening run of the day (1:19.48), while Berrian's 1:22.17 in the second run improved her standing from sixth to fourth. No Bates woman had placed in the top five in n alpine event since 1994.

"Winning an event is a huge accomplishment, because the larger schools on the circuit have been so dominant for so long," said Bates head alpine ski coach Ric Mackey. "This made for a great start to the season and we look forward to trying to improve upon it."

Hildebrand, a sophomore and former teammate of Berrian's at Green Mountain Valley School, also posted a top-five finish, taking fifth place with a combined time of 2:26.44. An All-American in the men's slalom in 1999, Hildebrand had two previous top-five finishes in that event, but this is his best-ever performance in the GS.

As a team, the Bates men placed fourth in the giant slalom.

The Bates men and women overall placed fifth at the carnival. The women's Nordic team placed seventh in the 10K freestyle and the men were eighth in the 15K freestyle. The carnival was shortened to a one-day event because of a combination of low temperatures and high winds that caused wind chill factors as low as -125 degrees at the top of the ski run.

Berrian is a 1998 graduate of Green Mountain Valley School. She is the daughter of Kim and Renee Berrian, Waitsfield, Vt.

Rogers is a 1999 graduate of Stratton Mountain School. She is the daughter of Walter and Karen Rogers, Charlestown, Mass.

Hildebrand is a 1996 graduate of Green Mountain Valley School. He is the son of James Hildebrand, Waitsfield, Vt., and Susan Hildebrand, Burlington, Vt.

For more information on Bates alpine and Nordic skiing, visit their Web sites at http://www.bates.edu/sports/alpine.html and http://www.bates.edu/sports/nordic.html.