E-SPILLWAY NEWSLETTER
THE SPRING COMPETITION EDITION
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CVA ADMISSIONS VIDEO PREMIER |
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At the opening ceremonies of USASA Nationals this year, a new CVA admissions video premiered on the jumbotron for thousands of prospective student-athletes and their families to see.
A film production company, Train 918 Productions, was onsite February 28th - March 2nd, filming our student-athletes to produce the day-in-the-life video. In three days, the crew experienced all that Sugarloaf Mountain has to offer, from a snowstorm to a bluebird day. The result was an inspiring video that shows the true beauty of our campus, training venues, and all that CVA has to offer.
A special thank you goes out to the three students featured in the video, who arrived early, stayed late, and allowed a film crew to fully document a day in their lives. Thank you to Nick Klemperer ’27, Nattee McKenzie ’24, and Walker Wolfe ’26 for going above and beyond to make this video a success.
In case you missed the premiere, you can bring it to a screen near you by following the link below.
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ATHLETIC NEWS: CHAMPIONSHIP EDITION |
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U12/14 Piches
The Francis Piche Invitational is a U12/U14 Championship that attracts athletes from across New England and beyond. Three hundred and twenty-nine racers from about 49 different racing programs participated in Piches.
CVA joined up with the other racers from Maine to become a unified team, working together at the start, course reports, video, team dinners, and more. Team Maine got 2nd place overall for the 3-day competition. CVA athlete, Charlie Lord WP, won the “Hard Charger” award, presented to an athlete that moves the furthest up in the starting order in one race.
Congratulations to all the CVA Academy and Weekend Program Alpine athletes who earned their invite to this great event:
U12 Girls: Quinnie Marston, Helena Rueter, Morgan Barnhorst, Maddy Gilbert, Alice DeGeorge, Camille Cannan
U12 boys: Luke Holman, Charlie Lord, Robbie Servidio, Boden Folger David, Preston Ponitz, Mason Mehalic, Joseph Mannisto, Henry Hall
U14 girls: Tatum Folger David ’27, Maddy Cannan, Josie Malin
U14 boys: Kohen Kinney ’27, Henry Demetriou, Sawyer Adams, Chase Barnhorst, Caleb Rand
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U14 Canadian American Championship
Congratulations to Will Albert ’26, Ethan Godomsky ’27, and Nick Klemperer ’27 who had a strong showing at the U14 Canadian-American Championship (Can-Am) event. The top 76 American and Eastern Canadian U14 athletes made for a steep field of competition, but CVA athletes had some standout results with top-30 finishes by all 3 athletes: Will (30th in GS), Ethan (5th in Super-G, 11th in GS, and 12th in SL), and Nick (15th in GS, 22nd in Super-G, and 23rd in SL). A Big Dog round of applause to Ethan for his 8th place finish overall!
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U16 Easterns & Finals
In March, CVA Alpine athletes competed in U16 Easterns on home turf at Sugarloaf, resulting in top-ten finishes in SL for Mia Bruno ’25 (7th) and Lucia Littlefield ’26 (8th). U16 Finals were held the following week at Attitash, where a season of hard work paid off with some excellent results. Congratulations to Tanner Bland ’26 for his top-ten finish in GS!
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U16 Nationals
Congratulations to Lucia Littlefield ’26 and Mia Bruno ’25, who qualified for U16 National Championships at Mission Ridge Ski & Board Resort in Washington state. Only 15 men and 15 women from the East are chosen to compete in this event.
These two athletes trained hard to earn their spot, motivating and supporting each other all season. Overall, it was an outstanding experience, they both skied well, with Mia placed 3rd in the team slalom event.
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U18 Nationals
CVA Alpine athletes Charlie Koenig ’24, Althea Noyes ’23, Caleb Stefanakos ’24, and Kaden Theriault ’24 qualified for U18 Nationals in Mittersill, NH. Charlie, a first-year FIS athlete, secured two podium finishes - in Downhill and Super G, and teammate, Althea placed in the top 10 in the Super G.
Eastern Cup Finals
The FIS Eastern Cup Finals took place at Sugarloaf during the first week of April. CVA athletes finished strong, congratulations to Althea Noyes ’23 (5th in GS) and Charlie Koenig ’24 (7th in SL).
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US Junior Nationals
Seven CVA Mogul athletes qualified to compete in the U.S. Freestyle Junior National Championships at Steamboat Springs in March: Celia Rose ’27, Kenadie Dickey ’26, Kennedy Hicks ’25, Jack Egan ’25, Nattee McKenzie ’24, Chase Littlefield ’24, and Dory Michaud ’23.
Congratulations to US Freestyle Junior Moguls Champion - Dory Michaud (M-1st place, DM-2nd) and these top-10 finishers: Chase Littlefield U17 M-6th, DM-7th; Jack Egan U17 DM-8th; Kenadie Dickey U15 DM-8th.
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US Nationals
Four CVA Mogul athletes qualified for the US Freestyle National Championship at Waterville Valley, NH: Dory Michaud ’23, Chase Littlefield ’24, Jack Egan ’25, and Kenadie Dickey ’26.
Their hard work earned them the opportunity to compete head-to-head with the country's top mogul skiers.
CVA senior, Dory Michaud earned 6th place (M) and 5th place (DM) finishes, making her the top-ranked female mogul skier not yet on the US Ski Team! Dory has had an amazing season, consistently placing in the top 10 at the Nor-Am Cup level, as well as placing 5th at U.S. Selections earlier this season. Dory is poised for a promising World Cup-level career. Chase Littlefield had an impressive top-10 finish in dual moguls!
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Dory Michaud ’23 in the News |
CVA Moguls student-athlete Dory Michaud ’23 was featured in the news recently. She did a fantastic job, representing herself and her school well.
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CVA Freeski Academy and Weekend Program athletes were at Copper Mountain, Colorado for the USASA National Championships. It was a fun week of steep competition and the Big Dogs performed strong. Congratulations to Quinn Abeles WP for her 2nd place finish in Slopestyle and 1st place finish in Ski Cross. Congratulations as well to Phineas Prime-Spivak WP and Kiernan Mann ’23 for your top 10 finishes in Slopestyle.
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Junior World Championship
CVA Ski Cross athletes Francois Meloni ’23, Maggie Swain ’24, and Morgan Shute ’25 qualified for the Junior World Championships in Passo San Pellegrino, Italy.
"The team showed up to Italy hoping for a training day but mother nature had other ideas," said CVA Ski Cross Coach Mike Phelan. "It was decided that we would go straight to the race with no training day. In the face of adversity, the team stayed confident and the results were quite impressive for first-year FIS athletes at their first Junior Worlds: Morgan-7th, Maggie-12th, Francois-38th."
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USASA Nationals
The Ski Cross team had an amazing showing at USASA National Championships at Copper Mountain, Colorado, resulting in 4 championship titles and 12 top-ten finishes!
Congratulations to Morgan Shute ’25 - 1st place in Women's Open Class, Amy Latendresse ’24 - 1st for Women 17-18, Will Swain ’27 - 1st for Men 11-12, and Quinn Abeles WP - 1st for Women 7-8.
Congratulations also to top-10 finishers:
Aidan Butler ’26 - 2nd (M13-14), Jamie Hering ’26 - 4th (M13-14), Lilian Sittig ’25 - 4th (W15-16), Sully Butler ’24 - 4th (Men's Open), Maggie Swain ’24 - 5th (Women's Open), Francois Meloni ’23 - 5th (Men's Open), Dahlia Willey WP - 5th (W9-10), and Liam Hohl WP - 2nd (M11-12).
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CVA Ski Cross in the News |
The CVA Ski Cross team made the news! These athletes' hard work and individual accomplishments earned them invites to Junior World Championships in Italy. They did a great job in the interview and represented themselves and CVA very well. |
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The Junior World Championships give hundreds of elite athletes across all FIS Olympic disciplines their first taste of competing on the global stage for a World Championship medal. In March, Sasha Jansujwicz ’23 and Taggert Carr ’24 represented the U.S. in Alpine Snowboard in Bansko, Bulgaria. Sasha placed 16th in the PGS and 11th in the team event. Boden represented the U.S. in Snowboard Cross in San Pellegrino, Italy March 28-31 and earned 17th place. Congratulations!
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USASA Nationals
CVA Snowboard athletes brought their A game to Copper Mountain for USASA National Championships. The team finished the week with 3 podium spots and 15 top ten results!
Congratulations to Walker Wolfe ’26 (1st slalom, 3rd GS) and Charlie MacLeod WP (3rd slalom).
Congratulations as well to these CVA athletes who made the top ten: Sasha Jansujwicz ’23, Hayden Hoffman ’24, Allegra Hoffman WP, Lilly Mae Awamleh WP, Paisley Fredette WP, and Lorenzo Warren WP!
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Boden Gerry ’24 in the News |
CVA Snowboard Cross student-athlete Boden Gerry ’24 was featured in the news recently. He did a great job, representing himself, his sport, and the CVA community extremely well. |
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The CVA Backcountry team traveled to Hauganes, Iceland in early April. Hauganes is a small coastal town in the northern part of Iceland with views of the Norwegian Sea and massive mountains. This trip was different from the usual trip, as some of the athletes' parents joined. Not only did these parents get to see what really happens on Backcountry trips, but they got to experience the backcountry lifestyle while bonding with their teens.
It was a fun and successful week. The group experienced four days of incredible skiing. The weather allowed for a perfect freeze-thaw cycle which minimized avalanche danger and made everything ski super well. Athletes explored wide open faces, bowls, and couloirs on skis and the steeper areas with crampons and ice axes.
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CELEBRATING THE INAUGURAL SEASON
OF THE PODIUM PROJECT
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In March, our ski community’s greatest supporters and champions from Sugarloaf, Carrabassett Valley Academy, Colby College, the Sugarloaf Ski Club, and the University of Maine Farmington came together to celebrate the inaugural season of The Podium Project at Sugarloaf Mountain. The Podium Project is a collaborative vision launched in 2022 to provide optimal training opportunities to athletes by offering a centralized training venue and dedicated surface lift that results in more time on snow.
“The T-bar operated flawlessly; I haven't seen a new surface lift operate as well in the first phase of operation," said Kirk Dwyer, CVA Special Projects/Alpine Program Director. "We are so appreciative of Sugarloaf’s consistent operation of the lift and the cooperation and support we received from mountain operations all season. The lift operators were great and the grooming was consistently excellent."
"The T-bar and additional training space made a world of difference for the Weekend Program athlete's ability to train and reduced their presence in the lift lines," Dwyer continued.
The Project included the widening of Competition Hill to allow for up to six slalom courses and/or three giant slaloms plus the B Mogul course and airbag jump.
"Even when it was most heavily utilized on weekends, with the speed lowered for the younger athletes, the uphill capacity of the lift handled our numbers well," Dwyer stated.
For full-time athletes and the college teams, operation of the T-bar at 2.5 meters per second (lower than full speed) generally eliminated any lift line and allowed all the training athletes could handle within a traditional 2-2.5 hour training blocks.
"Above all we are so appreciative of the spirit of partnership and coordination we felt with Sugarloaf all season long” Dwyer concluded.
Together we are fostering friendships, instilling a lifelong love of winter sports, and supporting competitive athletes of all ages. Thank you to the many donors and volunteers who made this 40+ year dream come true.
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Carrabassett Valley Academy (CVA) is proud to announce our partnership with the United States of America Snowboard and Freeski Association (USASA).
This partnership marries two brands that share common values including athlete development, confidence building, skill building, and community.
CVA will provide academic and athletic excellence for our student-athletes, and USASA will provide the stage for them to shine! Together, this partnership will positively influence the future winter sport.
At USASA Nationals, CVA-branded neckies and information about the academy were included in every competitor's swag bag to announce our partnership. What was the result? There was a sea of CVA-hopefuls, wearing their neckies with pride while they competed. It was great to see the future generation of CVA athletes rocking some Big Dog pride.
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FEBRUARY STUDENT SPOTLIGHTS |
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Community Member of the Month |
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Luna consistently puts the CVA community first and models our values of kindness, respect, commitment, and gratitude. She is a rock star on the dish crew and takes care of things even when she is alone. She always stays until the very end of the shift to ensure everything is done and done well. Thank you, Luna! |
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Lauren is a stand out student and maintains strong effort and high marks even when away from campus. She recently scored a 100% on a challenging test. Lauren models commitment, hard work, intellectual aptitude, and curiosity. Keep up the good work, Lauren. We are all proud of you! |
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As a first-year FIS athlete, Morgan worked hard all year and it is paying off. Morgan is the 2022-23 USSS FIS Ski Cross Women’s National Champion and the USASA National Champion. Her points this year earned her a nomination to Junior World Championships in Italy. Congratulations, Morgan, keep up the great work! |
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Community Member of the Month |
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Mia always lends a hand when she sees a need. You can often find her in the kitchen before lunch time, helping the kitchen crew set up. She has been instrumental in English class, assisting her teacher and fellow students. Mia truly embodies the CVA spirit of community. Keep up the good work, Mia, and thank you for everything you do! |
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A hard-work ethic and positive attitude keep Ella consistently at the top of her classes. She is doing particularly well in Algebra II, English I, and Biology. Ella pushes herself as a student, is not afraid to go out of her comfort zone, and participates well in class. Keep up the good work Ella! |
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Boden is currently the highest ranked 17-year-old Snowboard Cross athlete in the world, and is ranked 10th overall in the US. Boden’s hard work and dedication has really paid off, earning him six FIS podiums this year, with his first Nor-Am gold at the Sunday River/Holeshot competition. His success this season secured him a spot on Team USA at the Junior World Championships in San Pellegrino, Italy and he is on track to compete for the US at the Junior Olympics next year. |
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SUGARLOAF SKI CLUB GOLF CLASSIC |
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The 42nd Annual Sugarloaf Ski Club Golf Classic is:
Friday, June 23, 9am
Shotgun start
Sugarloaf's longest running and premier golf event raises funds for the Dick & Martha Ayotte Scholarship Fund.
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3197 Carrabassett Drive
Carrabassett Valley, ME 04947
Phone: (207) 237-2250
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