National Collegiate Men's and Women's Skiing Championships

Dates and sites: Regional qualifications will take place at three sites: East -- February 27-28, hosted by Middlebury; West -- February 27-28, hosted by Western State; and Central -- February 28-29, hosted by Michigan Tech. The championships are March 10-13 at the Sugar Bowl Ski Resort and Auburn Ski Club in Truckee, California. Nevada is the host institution.

Field: The field includes 148 competitors -- 74 men and 74 women. They will compete in a total of eight events (four per gender). Alpine and Nordic student-athletes qualify in the region in which their institution is located, with the exception of Alpine skiers in the Central region who may qualify in either the East or West regionals and must previously declare their qualification region. The maximum team size is 12 student-athletes, three per gender per discipline.

Selection date: March 2.

2003 team champion: Utah.

Top team contenders: In the East region, Middlebury, Vermont and Dartmouth are the teams to beat, while in the West region, Utah, New Mexico and Denver are dominant. In the Central region, Alaska Fairbanks, Northern Michigan and Wisconsin-Green Bay are the top teams.

Championships notes: In the East, Middlebury, Vermont and Dartmouth placed in the top three in all EISA conference carnival competitions through February 20-21. Middlebury's victory at the University of Vermont Carnival broke Vermont's 31-year winning steak in the event. In the West region, Utah, New Mexico, Denver and Colorado have looked strong all season. In the Central region, Northern Michigan and Alaska Fairbanks have had close competitions all season, either winning or losing tournaments by just one or two points ... Historically, teams from the West region have won more national championships than those from the East. Western teams have won the past nine years, with Vermont being the most recent Eastern region team to claim the title (1994). Vermont and Dartmouth are the only Eastern teams to have won.

National Collegiate Men's and Women's Rifle Championships

Dates and site: The championships will be March 12-13 at Murray State.

Field: A total of 48 competitors will be selected. The top eight or fewer teams in each team event and 40 or fewer individuals in each individual event qualify for the championships.

Selection date: February 24.

2003 team champion: Alaska Fairbanks.

Top team contenders: According to a recent Collegiate Rifle Coaches Association poll, Alaska Fairbanks, Navy, Xavier, Nevada and Nebraska make up the top five.

Championships notes: Alaska Fairbanks is seeking a sixth straight and seventh overall national championship ... Xavier, runner-up in the 2003 championships, features four returning starters, including junior Hannah Kerr, who captured the USA Shooting Junior Women's 3-position national championship in 2003 ... West Virginia University has won the most team titles (13) but the school no longer sponsors the sport ... Tennessee Tech won the first three championships in 1980, 1981 and 1982