Four New U.S. Collegiate Champions Crowned
by Kelly Hodge, U.S. Figure Skating Director of Collegiate ProgramsSenior Ladies and Men's Free Skate Photos
Junior Ladies and Men's Free Skate Photos
Backstage Photos from Saturday
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| Alissa Czisny Photo by Ledin Photo and Video |
Alissa Czisny continued her dominance of the 2004 U.S. Collegiate Championships senior ladies division by winning the free skate Saturday night. In three days of competition, she captured all but one first-place mark. Her free skate to “Swan Lake” was beautiful, and while her jumps are impressive, her spins, extensions, spirals and breathtaking skating style are what stood out in the field. She began her program with a triple Lutz-double toe combination and went on to complete three additional triple jumps – a loop, toe, and Salchow, but she missed her triple flip, second triple Lutz and double Axel.
“The first half of my program was good, but I'm not happy with the second half,” she said. “Overall, my skating at this competition was pretty good, but I'd like to improve the jumps for the DuPage Open, my next competition.”
Alissa is looking forward to majoring in foreign languages at Bowling Green State University and said she especially likes French.
“I'd like to be a translator at the Olympics some day,” she said.
After finishing third in the short program, Michelle Rosinski (Wayne State University) was happy to move up to second and take home the silver medal.
“I'm very happy,” she said. “I thought I was going to have to pull out after pulling a muscle in my back during practice. But I decided to try the warm-up and see how it felt. I decided to tough it out and see how I could handle it, and I'm really glad I did.”
Rosinski also had superior skating quality and good speed. She landed two triple jumps, a Salchow in combination and a toe, and also landed a double Axel and several double jumps. Rosinski, an English education major, will be a junior this year at Wayne State.
“This competition was a lot different from other skating events,” she said. “It was a really good atmosphere and a lot of fun.”
Amber Czisny, in second place after the short program, had a rough free skate.
“It was not good,” she said. “I train much better than I skated tonight, and I'm going to continue training to improve for my next competition.”
Amber landed a triple loop but made a mistake on her triple Salchow, doubled a planned triple Lutz and two-footed a triple toe. She landed a double Axel and her spins and spiral step sequence were outstanding.
Senior MenThe senior men's event was full of surprises. While the top two spots remained intact, every other competitor changed places.
Short program leader Daniel Steffel held on to win the gold medal. He started out his program very well by nailing a triple flip-double toe combination and following it directly with a triple Lutz. Skating to music from “Carmen,” his choreography, transitions, skating quality and spins were excellent. He struggled late in the program, having difficulty on the landings of his triple Lutz-double toe combination, triple Salchow and falling on a triple toe.
“I'm happy with my program,” he said. “It was the first time I competed [as a] senior.”
Steffel, a junior film production major at Loyola Marymount University in Southern California, was off the ice for quite some time with an injury.
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| Daniel Steffel Photo by Ledin Photo and Video |
Winning the silver for the second consecutive year was Sean Calvillo, who skated to “Gods & Generals" and "North & South.” He fell on his triple Lutz but completed a good double Axel, triple toe, triple loop, triple Salchow and triple toe-double toe combination. He skated well to the music and had very strong landing positions on all of his jumps. While Calvillo did earn four first-place marks, it wasn't enough to overtake Steffel.
Luke Capizzo of Michigan State University was very excited to win the bronze medal. After finishing fifth in the short program, he skated a very good free skate, which included five triple jumps (one in combination) and a double Axel. Capizzo actually finished fourth in the free skate, but with the many changes in standing among all the men, he ended up third overall.
Michael Sasaki (Soka University of America) finished third in the free skate with a very impressive and passionate program to a karate theme.
Junior LadiesIn the junior ladies event, the standout was once again Rachel Baisch who held on to her lead following the short program. Wearing a stunning teal dress and skating to music from Cirque du Soleil, Baisch opened her program with a solid double Axel. She went on to complete several double jumps including a double Lutz with good flow and height. However, it was her skating quality, including deep edges, smooth and difficult step sequences and creative choreography that separated her from the group.
Baisch, who will be attending Macalester College in St. Paul, Minn., to be able to continue training with her same coach, enjoyed her experience at her first U.S. Collegiate Championships.
“I would recommend this competition to all students,” said Baisch, a future physical therapist. “I got to meet new people, and it's a great experience. I'm satisfied with the whole experience.”
Entering the free skate in third place, Lauren Roman (University of Illinois) skated well enough to pull up one spot and take home the silver medal. She opened her program to music from “Legends of the Fall” with a double flip followed by a triple toe loop that only had a small cheat. Roman fell on her first double Axel but landed another one later in the program in combination. Her spins and presentation also helped her to secure the second spot.
“I was very pleased with my performance,” said Roman, who will be studying kinesiology. “I had been working hard on my double Axel.”
The 6.0 scoring system worked in Andrea Vickers' (Belmont University) favor. She entered the free skate in fourth place and skated a solid program with several double jumps including a double Lutz-double loop combination and double loop-double loop combination. Her only mistake was a fall on her double Axel. With a split panel, she also ended up fourth in the free skate. However, with many of her competitors switching placements after the short, she went home with the bronze medal.
Andrea Pinter (Eastern Michigan University), who skated to lovely music from the movie “Ever After, A Cinderella Story,” couldn't have done any better. After an eighth-place finish in the short program, she moved up all the way to third in the free skate, earning four second-place marks. Her free skate performance left her in fourth place overall.
Junior MenThere was a switch in the placements in the junior men's event, with Luke Mafazy moving up to take the gold medal from Daniel Eison.
“My short program was rough,” Mafazy said. “But I came into the free skate and decided to attack it, and I'm happy with how I skated.”
The sophomore finance major at the University of Cincinnati skated to “Spy Games” and landed a triple flip and triple toe. He did fall on his attempt at a triple Salchow but had good power, edges and step sequences.
Daniel Eison, who will begin his college career at Princeton University this month, also skated well, but he made mistakes on elements that he normally does well.
“I learned that I can't take the easy stuff for granted,” he said. “I'm ready to gear up for the North American Challenge Skate, my next competition, and I'd like to put two good programs out there.”
Eison completed two nice triple toe loops, including one in combination, and a double Axel. He put his hand down on a triple Salchow and popped a double Lutz. He had good presentation, speed and difficult step sequences.
Overall, the U.S. Collegiate Figure Skating Championships were a great success. The organizing committee did a wonderful job, and all the skaters not only enjoyed the challenge of competing but also enjoyed the camaraderie and friendly atmosphere of the competition. They're already talking about meeting up at next year's event in Honolulu, Hawaii.
