haribobo
07-28-2002, 04:05 AM
Hey everyone,
I've finally gotten around to typing up my Saturday notes. Since Louis and some others have already provided technical reports, I thought I'd pitch in with some of my 'general impressions' on Saturday's events. Sorry this is a week late-- school and fatigue got in the way...
I'll post a few thoughts on the senior men, and then jump into more detailed reports on Sr Ladies, Jr. Ladies, and Jr. Men. Plus a little blurb on pairs. :) Yay for skating in the summer! :)
SENIOR MEN FREE SKATE
Scott Smith looks like he hasn't stopped training since nationals, while Derrick and Ryan particularly looked like they are just starting their seasons (which they are, so let's cut them some slack). It'll be interesting to see which strategy proves more successful by the time nationals rolls around. Smith has improved greatly since last season. Good coverage and speed, nice spins. Ryan Jahnke had a good program and gorgeous tano 3lutz. Thank you Ryan for bringing back that great jump! Derrick Delmore has another wonderful free program, this time to West Side Story, doing with this music what T/M could not do last season, *expression*!! I didn't take detailed notes, but this is one you all need to see for yourselves. So great to see Ryan Bradley land a gorgeous clean triple axel. The boy is a gamer-- tried for a 4t and second 3ax later even though there was so little hope for him landing either. Courage is what you need as a senior man though, and I think the failed attempts will serve him well in the long run, as long as he doesn't fall too hard....his other triples are coming along nicely and this program is going to be just fine as he puts more miles on it. It didn't look like all the choreography was there yet but I am not worried. This guy is such an entertainer and really is beginning to look like a contendor to make the final group at Nationals again. I can see him as high as 4th at Nationals if he can execute all his jumps and choreography in both programs. Same could be said for Scott Smith and Derrick Delmore. Danny Clausen was a good mover, confident and in character, good program but I didn't see any 3z or 3axel attempts here, so that will continue to hurt him at Mids. No quad either, of course. Rohene Ward-- just amazing from start to finish, lovely spins, gorgeous moves, great speed and spins. Congrats to him for winning Detroit-- sounds like he was much more *on* with the jumps there. Eric Ritter had ok footwork, lots of plain skating and telegraphing going into the jumps. Nice death drop and spin. OK program. Kurt Fromknecht-- great footwork and cool moves, fun program to music from The Matrix, including parts that K/Dmitriev and the Rogenesses skated to recently. Great idea for a program-- the jumps were not there yet but I still think he has a great shot at making nationals in senior men. I'd imagine that Goebel, Weiss, and Savoie will be the top 3 this year, but 4th seems wide open, the contendors being Delmore, Smith, Weir, Bradley, Jahnke, and Ward. I'm excited about the improvements and changes that many of these men have made since nationals, and I hope I'm able to get a tape of the entire competition because ABC refuses to show more than the top 6 at Nationals, though there will probably be about 12 very tv-worthy performances by the men this year.
SENIOR LADIES FREE SKATE
1. Daria Timoshenko- started off with an intricate and interesting program that had good conviction in her movements, but when the jumps started to fail there really wasn't a whole lot else going on to keep the performance from falling apart. Still, it was nice to see at least one lady have some control over the more difficult triple jumps. Hopefully she'll be able to polish off the end of the program and be a real force wherever she competes this year-- she has the content...
2. Lisa Horstman- I agree with Louis that Lisa was a jump or 2 away from winning the free skate. I noted that she had good speed, fine spins, and generally a solid program with a few bobbles but overall very good. She incorporated some nice field moves as well. Look for her to possibly shake things up at Mids this year.
3. Chloe Katz- I liked her last year but this year she seems to be establishing herself as one of the most elegant and enjoyable senior ladies in the East. I really admired her posture and great layback. Her spins also had great positions. Very fine skater who I hope to see again at Easterns. I also greatly enjoyed her Novice Pairs SP with partner Joseph Lynch so she probably has a better chance at overall success in pairs but it'll be a sad day when she quits singles cause she's so great to watch. As of this competition, she didn't seem to be trying any of the more difficult triples-- I don't think she has anything besides a toe or salchow but that (and her strong basics) was still enough for 3rd place in this field.
4. Heather Geboers- Started off strong with a 3t-2t but then proceeded to mess up just about every other jump in her program. I noted a great camel spin at the beginning of the program. By the end, there were so many jump errors that it was starting to feel like a real disaster despite the great start, and she even fell on a spin at the end. I am surprised she got as high as fourth-- I would have thought the poor ending would have knocked her down to 8th place or so-- for her sake I hope she can hold it together better later in the season. Her SP was very impressive in this field.
5. Stephanie Roth took 5th (I think) with a new program to Sansom & Delilah and started out nice with a great camel spin, other cools spins, and skating with good conviction and improved speed over last year at Easterns. She also had a great Ina Bauer and good spiral, but I noted that she did have a spin problem and falling four times certainly didn't help her. Still, if she can keep her jumps together later in the season, she could (once again) be a major factor at Easterns with this strong program.
6.Kristin Tudisco was, I believe, 6th with good energy, OK spins, and some peppy footwork. A lot of her jumps were either cheated or wonky looking. She's so tiny that I guess there's not a whole lot of muscle in her legs to really bang out any clean, high, gorgeous triples yet. I'm still hoping that she will grow because she just does not look substantial enough in any way to be a real factor at this point. I did admire her spark and energy at this competition, though, because many of the other ladies looked awfully miserable and slow, especially the lower ranked ladies.
7. Krissa Miller skated with an elegant look in her program to Nessun Dorma (Puccini). She started wtih a nice leap, had strong stroking and posture, nice movement overall and fast spins. Jumps were fairly messy but it was nice to see her attacking the program more than she did at Easterns. I have a hard time picturing her making Nationals based on her performance here, but she at least seems to be moving in the right direction and there really is nothing wrong with her overall skating and she seems to have the ability to rotate the difficult jumps-- now just the matter of landing them cleanly...
8. Steffie Smith had fairly strong presentation and good effort in her program to Speed, a good death drop, nice spirals, a footwork problem and a spin at the end that slowed down too much, but overall this program was decent and solid. It was nice to see her put some effort into interpreting the music because whoever else it was that skated to Speed in this competition (I can't remember) was quite awful. She seemed to have the feel for this kind of program. Her doubles were solid and she could contend at Mids if she managed to get some triples in...I'm not expecting to see her at Nationals this year but I look forward to seeing her in the future.
9. Andrea Varraux- it was interesting to see her trying some of the harder triples (lutz and loop) that she couldn't do last year, but she wasn't successful on any of her attempts in this program. She actually failed to even land a double axel cleanly (though she did a beauty in the SP), thus the low placement. I noted that she had nice spins and positions, smooth, quiet blades with great edging, and a very nice program overall. Still, she moves me more as a pairs skater and especially with the great free skate performance (skating with the American David Pelletier), I think that is her true calling...
The only other skater I took notes on was Jennifer McClure because I thought she'd at least contend for a top-ten spot based on her past results. Unfortunately, she was terrible here. Her program and music was boring and unoriginal to me-- there seemed to be no attempts at choreography whatsoever. Spins were ok. I suppose she has a fair amount of talent, but I feel that it's being wasted with this free program. Jumps were a mess. Her SP was a lot better, where I noted she had a good layback, strong basics, and powerful presentation to Gershwin music. And her 2ax there was great, but she seems to be having no success with the triples. I just do not get the feeling that this skater is improving from year to year, and if she doesn't step it up a few notches, I don't see her making it out of South Atlantics.
The senior ladies who placed 10th and below in the freeskate just did not seem to be jumping on a level that would be at all competitive with the top ladies at sectionals, and several of them did not have the basic skating either. Kristin Shearer, Rhiannon Kallis, Jessica Cohen, Cindy Hsieh, and Lisa Plumeri really sucked the energy out of the building with their subpar performances in the free program. I have to wonder, if skating is such an expensive sport to participate in, why do some of these ladies continue to compete if they are clearly not going anywhere? I guess they must *really* love to skate...I suppose these lower-ranked senior ladies allow us to realize how great the top ladies really are.
JUNIOR LADIES FINAL FREESKATE
*This event was very close between all the ladies-- honestly any of the top 4 could have justifiably been placed first. Very high quality skating from all of these ladies. It looks like Junior Ladies at Easterns (and Mids) will be a great event this year.
1. Erica Archambault-- Aside from the 3sal-2t and two 2ax-2t, she landed a whole bunch of nice doubles which gave her enough content for the win despite only one clean triple. I would say she looked like a promising skater-- not quite there yet overall but looking well on her way. Good speed and coverage, spunky, nice sideways spin, good effort on footwork, overally a clean skate so it's not a total surprise that she won. The music was Madame Butterfly, but I was more wondering what AP McD would do with it than interested in what Erica was doing on the ice.....sue me! :) Erica seems to be one of the frontrunners to make nationals but she will need more than 1 triple to get through sectionals, though I hear she is working on that. :)
2. Jane Bugaeva- A much improved Jane this season! Her triple jumps are really coming along and she seems much more substantial overall this year. I would not be surprised to see her near the top at Easterns this season. We (all the people I was sitting with and me) all loved Jane's free program. Nice spins, good attack, and a cute ending.
3. Susannah Hall- This looked like a best-ever performance for her. Skated to Spartacus. Very complete and satisfying performance with great spirals and impressive charlotte, nice layback. The skate was a true joy to watch, one of the highlights of the event for me. As I watched this, I was thinking, "now THIS is what it looks like when a skater performs to her potential!" Susannah is a fantastic looking skater and seemed to have a great tan, her dark skin contrasting with the white dress she was wearing. I hope she can make nationals this season (out of Pacific Coasts I think) because I love this program and more people should get to see it!
4. Kristen Sheaffer- Finished 4th in this free skate though I though she'd get first. Kristen is a very strong skater and looked like the class of a very strong field. She wasn't really on with her jumps at this competition but I'd still be surprised if she didn't medal at Nationals. She had a couple pops so I guess the lack of a lutz and sal hurt her. Strong presentation to Spanish music, is what I wrote ("classical flamenco," says Louis). Good ice coverage, great overall program, and of course nice spins, including the closing yoga spin where she tucks her head under her foot. If she had landed 1 or 2 more triples, nobody would have been able to touch Kristen here. Great originality, costumes, and music choices make me a fan. Her SP to the ER theme was a lot of fun too, even though she didn't hit the jumps.
5. Anna Peng- This is an absolutely gorgeous skater!!! Skated to Butterfly Lovers (did justice to it!) and actually landed some of her jumps this time (every time I have seen her in the past she has had disasters). Great spins, movement, and gorgeous spirals. Graceful and really has *it* as a skater. Her SP inconsistencies could hurt her, but she definitely has the talent to make nationals as a junior this year should things go well for her at Easterns.
6. Alexandra Jasinowski finished 6th though I might have had her a little lower. Nice mover, nice layback, and pretty good program were the positive points. Her jumping technique was really ugly and her triple attempts were not close to being real triples. Cheats and underrotations all over the place, even her 2axel was low and suspicious...I'm curious to see whether she improves this later in the season. Nice 2z-2r-2r combo though. I'm not too optimistic about her chances this year, but you never know...
7. Leah Agler- No luck with the triples in this performance, though I think she has landed one or two in practice and other competitions. Nice spins, great look on the ice enhanced by years of ballet training, great extension on all her moves, including spirals, but she needs more speed and power, noted Ann who sat next to me. Promising young skater.
8. Maggie Leski- I thought I died and went to heaven when she started skating. She only landed one triple and no clean 2ax, but all of the *skating* was wonderful. Great layback, great extension, great footwork!!! (best ladies ftwk of the competition, I think), smooth/quiet blades, awesome spins and presentation. I guess she's skating for Poland. Note to Poland: promote her! She's fantastic! Note to Maggie: get yourself a 2ax and a few triples and you'll be a star!
9. Alexandra Tregre- This was a letdown after her wonderful short program, but the skating was still nice. I think she only managed 2ax, 2z, and 2f, the rest was pretty messy. Very good spinning, great movement and choreography, strong basics and nice spirals. Too bad, hope to see her spreading her joy again at regionals and sectionals. I wouldn't bet on her making nationals this season, but she's another one who is on the way up...
10. Amanda Moehling- Nice layback, pretty average overall, solid, but with boring music. Lots of 2-footed jumps and a couple falls left her with very little clean jump content. She'll have a tough field to face at regionals (and sectionals, if she makes it that far).
11. Kristen Mita- Jumps were a mess this time but she looked capable-- I've heard she has all the triples up through the flip in practice! Nice spins and good presentations. Maybe she's just not in top shape at this point in the season......very enjoyable skater.
12. Sarah Farley- Cool spins-- she's a little spitfire. Very neat and crisp movements. No triples or 2axels put her in last place but she is capable of better than this-- her qualifying skate was quite strong and she has a good chance of making a splash at New England regionals, though it's not a sure thing she'll make sectionals and she doesn't seem to have much of a shot of making nationals this year. I'll look forward to seeing her in the future.
JUNIOR MEN FINAL FREESKATE
Top 6 were very strong skaters.
1. Jason Wong- great win with a really successful program in terms of jumps. At this rate, he could be challenging for the podium at Nationals. Nice spins, good presentation, and solid skating. Great movement.
2. Michael Solonoski- I just love this program to Romeo and Juliet. Nice slow part in the middle to Kissing You with appropriate choreography. ;) Nice spins, mature skater, very nice jump technique. Clean skater with high quality elements and he could challenge at Easterns if he lands his jumps. Of all the Junior Men's freeskates I've seen over the past 2 years, this one and Brad Griffies' skate to Firedance (by Jesse Cook) are my favorites. His qualifying round free skate was also gorgeous and clean. He looked very well prepared for this competition. Nice guy who seems very personable, too.
3. Jeremy Abbott- Another skater who puts me on cloud 9....Great spin positions but needed more speed, strong movement, mature presentation, loved his style, AWESOME posture and positions, I mean, really incredible. He could probably use a little more power overall but what he has now is wonderful and unique for a male skater. I have a hard time describing it but hopefully you'll all see him for yourself someday...precious. I'm hoping he gets through Mids and he'll probably hit the 4-8 range at Nationals.
4. Casey McGraw- now this boy is a pretty strong jumper and has a nice camel, but this program did not do it for me. The skating was OK but the military (JFK?) music was really hard to get into...lots of military march snare drum stuff in the 2nd half that just got to be really redundant and tedious-- and it just was not musical. I just feel that this music is a mistake, but it's not the worst I've ever heard, and I think it should be fine for this season since he's still in juniors. This kind of program is not likely to earn him any fans though, and it would not cut it in seniors. Him and Jeremy Abbott have different strengths but overall are looking pretty similar in overall ability right now, so I have the same prediction for him this season as Abbott. Lots of strong skaters coming out of novice men from last season (Solonoski, Wong, Campbell, Abbott, McGraw......). I'm not sure there are any great novice men this year cause all the good ones moves up to juniors. I heard the novice men at Liberty were NOT enjoyable. I sat through the first 2 freeskates and decided life was too short and went back to the other rink. :p
5. Mauro Bruni- great skater, very nice spins and spirals, could have skated a little faster. Jumps are looking solid this year and nice music (Miss Saigon). Mauro looked confident and elegant in this competition. I appreciate the way he holds moves out, like one of his spirals. If he landed all his jumps, I think he could medal at nationals.
6. Adam Aronowitz had all kinds of jump problems in his Rach freeskate, but it is clear that he can land all the triple jumps through the lutz based on his other performances and practices here and at other competitions. I don't think he's inconsistent, this was just somewhat of an off night for him. Nice movement, speed, presentation, great death drop to sit spin, good spiral. Elegant, great spins, very strong program. Adam's skating is really coming along great, though he wasn't bad at all last year. I am predicting that he'll make the podium at Nationals if he can keep from flipping out and falling on the jumps that he is capable of landing.
7. Nathan Evancho had some nice jumps but one spin problem......overall nice spins, good speed and movement. Some good moves but really not commanding or sharp. He looks like he needs another year as junior to really be at the top of the field, but good for him to make it to the final free skate and I think he has potential.
8. Craig Ratterree- was awesome in the qualifying free skate and this was a notch down from that. Jumps were pretty messy-- very nice spins, nice moving, cool choreography, nice and light movement. I liked his music, pretty different from what you normally get. He wasn't quite in that top league overall with his skating and Ann pointed out that he needed more speed and power, which I agree with. This is a skater with soul on the ice though, I was able to feel what he was presenting. I hope to see more of this one. Loved the program.
9. Nick Kole- Presentation not too bad, but really sloppy on the jumps. All I wrote was, "What a mess!"
10. Joseph Lynch- Jumps were ok, no triples, smooth footwork, slow skating, easy choreography, spins were not good. Overall average skater.
I didn't watch any novice men or ladies, pairs were covered pretty well in other reports. Overall Jordan/Barrett continue to impress me, Varraux/Pelletier had an excellent free skate which was a major turnaround from their poor showing in the short program. Their twist seems to be the weakest element for them. I find both of these pairs to be creative, clever, and exciting and hope they have successful seasons. The 3 novice pairs were all at about the same level-- Katz/Lynch did an intermediate freeskate which I missed, but anyway, based on their SP, they are better than all the intermediates AND novices. I imagine they'll skate novice this year and should do well at Nationals. Phibbs/Patrick and Evora/Ladwig were impressive in the senior pairs exhibition. Elements were almost there, skating was STRONG! I wouldn't expect them to hit the top 10 at Nationals this year, but who knows what they could do in 2004. Senior Pairs in the US looks like it's finally picking up-- lots of pairs with good skating and sbs triples and throw triples. 2003 Nationals should have a really deep field barring too many injuries.
I had a great time at Liberty Open and would recommend going next year to any skating fan. I got to see a lot of skaters I had never seen before and came away with a good sense of where skaters are at at this point in the season. For some, you can tell who hasn't taken any time off vs. the skaters who just started training again for next season. Of course, some skated new programs and others kept the same ones from last year, so the results should not be taken too seriously. Yet, for the top skaters here, winning this was a big step to establishing themselves as a major contendor for regionals and sectionals down the line. Thanks to all the skaters, fellow fans, and organizers for making this such a fun competition to be at. Already looking forward to next year. Yours,
Haribobo
I've finally gotten around to typing up my Saturday notes. Since Louis and some others have already provided technical reports, I thought I'd pitch in with some of my 'general impressions' on Saturday's events. Sorry this is a week late-- school and fatigue got in the way...
I'll post a few thoughts on the senior men, and then jump into more detailed reports on Sr Ladies, Jr. Ladies, and Jr. Men. Plus a little blurb on pairs. :) Yay for skating in the summer! :)
SENIOR MEN FREE SKATE
Scott Smith looks like he hasn't stopped training since nationals, while Derrick and Ryan particularly looked like they are just starting their seasons (which they are, so let's cut them some slack). It'll be interesting to see which strategy proves more successful by the time nationals rolls around. Smith has improved greatly since last season. Good coverage and speed, nice spins. Ryan Jahnke had a good program and gorgeous tano 3lutz. Thank you Ryan for bringing back that great jump! Derrick Delmore has another wonderful free program, this time to West Side Story, doing with this music what T/M could not do last season, *expression*!! I didn't take detailed notes, but this is one you all need to see for yourselves. So great to see Ryan Bradley land a gorgeous clean triple axel. The boy is a gamer-- tried for a 4t and second 3ax later even though there was so little hope for him landing either. Courage is what you need as a senior man though, and I think the failed attempts will serve him well in the long run, as long as he doesn't fall too hard....his other triples are coming along nicely and this program is going to be just fine as he puts more miles on it. It didn't look like all the choreography was there yet but I am not worried. This guy is such an entertainer and really is beginning to look like a contendor to make the final group at Nationals again. I can see him as high as 4th at Nationals if he can execute all his jumps and choreography in both programs. Same could be said for Scott Smith and Derrick Delmore. Danny Clausen was a good mover, confident and in character, good program but I didn't see any 3z or 3axel attempts here, so that will continue to hurt him at Mids. No quad either, of course. Rohene Ward-- just amazing from start to finish, lovely spins, gorgeous moves, great speed and spins. Congrats to him for winning Detroit-- sounds like he was much more *on* with the jumps there. Eric Ritter had ok footwork, lots of plain skating and telegraphing going into the jumps. Nice death drop and spin. OK program. Kurt Fromknecht-- great footwork and cool moves, fun program to music from The Matrix, including parts that K/Dmitriev and the Rogenesses skated to recently. Great idea for a program-- the jumps were not there yet but I still think he has a great shot at making nationals in senior men. I'd imagine that Goebel, Weiss, and Savoie will be the top 3 this year, but 4th seems wide open, the contendors being Delmore, Smith, Weir, Bradley, Jahnke, and Ward. I'm excited about the improvements and changes that many of these men have made since nationals, and I hope I'm able to get a tape of the entire competition because ABC refuses to show more than the top 6 at Nationals, though there will probably be about 12 very tv-worthy performances by the men this year.
SENIOR LADIES FREE SKATE
1. Daria Timoshenko- started off with an intricate and interesting program that had good conviction in her movements, but when the jumps started to fail there really wasn't a whole lot else going on to keep the performance from falling apart. Still, it was nice to see at least one lady have some control over the more difficult triple jumps. Hopefully she'll be able to polish off the end of the program and be a real force wherever she competes this year-- she has the content...
2. Lisa Horstman- I agree with Louis that Lisa was a jump or 2 away from winning the free skate. I noted that she had good speed, fine spins, and generally a solid program with a few bobbles but overall very good. She incorporated some nice field moves as well. Look for her to possibly shake things up at Mids this year.
3. Chloe Katz- I liked her last year but this year she seems to be establishing herself as one of the most elegant and enjoyable senior ladies in the East. I really admired her posture and great layback. Her spins also had great positions. Very fine skater who I hope to see again at Easterns. I also greatly enjoyed her Novice Pairs SP with partner Joseph Lynch so she probably has a better chance at overall success in pairs but it'll be a sad day when she quits singles cause she's so great to watch. As of this competition, she didn't seem to be trying any of the more difficult triples-- I don't think she has anything besides a toe or salchow but that (and her strong basics) was still enough for 3rd place in this field.
4. Heather Geboers- Started off strong with a 3t-2t but then proceeded to mess up just about every other jump in her program. I noted a great camel spin at the beginning of the program. By the end, there were so many jump errors that it was starting to feel like a real disaster despite the great start, and she even fell on a spin at the end. I am surprised she got as high as fourth-- I would have thought the poor ending would have knocked her down to 8th place or so-- for her sake I hope she can hold it together better later in the season. Her SP was very impressive in this field.
5. Stephanie Roth took 5th (I think) with a new program to Sansom & Delilah and started out nice with a great camel spin, other cools spins, and skating with good conviction and improved speed over last year at Easterns. She also had a great Ina Bauer and good spiral, but I noted that she did have a spin problem and falling four times certainly didn't help her. Still, if she can keep her jumps together later in the season, she could (once again) be a major factor at Easterns with this strong program.
6.Kristin Tudisco was, I believe, 6th with good energy, OK spins, and some peppy footwork. A lot of her jumps were either cheated or wonky looking. She's so tiny that I guess there's not a whole lot of muscle in her legs to really bang out any clean, high, gorgeous triples yet. I'm still hoping that she will grow because she just does not look substantial enough in any way to be a real factor at this point. I did admire her spark and energy at this competition, though, because many of the other ladies looked awfully miserable and slow, especially the lower ranked ladies.
7. Krissa Miller skated with an elegant look in her program to Nessun Dorma (Puccini). She started wtih a nice leap, had strong stroking and posture, nice movement overall and fast spins. Jumps were fairly messy but it was nice to see her attacking the program more than she did at Easterns. I have a hard time picturing her making Nationals based on her performance here, but she at least seems to be moving in the right direction and there really is nothing wrong with her overall skating and she seems to have the ability to rotate the difficult jumps-- now just the matter of landing them cleanly...
8. Steffie Smith had fairly strong presentation and good effort in her program to Speed, a good death drop, nice spirals, a footwork problem and a spin at the end that slowed down too much, but overall this program was decent and solid. It was nice to see her put some effort into interpreting the music because whoever else it was that skated to Speed in this competition (I can't remember) was quite awful. She seemed to have the feel for this kind of program. Her doubles were solid and she could contend at Mids if she managed to get some triples in...I'm not expecting to see her at Nationals this year but I look forward to seeing her in the future.
9. Andrea Varraux- it was interesting to see her trying some of the harder triples (lutz and loop) that she couldn't do last year, but she wasn't successful on any of her attempts in this program. She actually failed to even land a double axel cleanly (though she did a beauty in the SP), thus the low placement. I noted that she had nice spins and positions, smooth, quiet blades with great edging, and a very nice program overall. Still, she moves me more as a pairs skater and especially with the great free skate performance (skating with the American David Pelletier), I think that is her true calling...
The only other skater I took notes on was Jennifer McClure because I thought she'd at least contend for a top-ten spot based on her past results. Unfortunately, she was terrible here. Her program and music was boring and unoriginal to me-- there seemed to be no attempts at choreography whatsoever. Spins were ok. I suppose she has a fair amount of talent, but I feel that it's being wasted with this free program. Jumps were a mess. Her SP was a lot better, where I noted she had a good layback, strong basics, and powerful presentation to Gershwin music. And her 2ax there was great, but she seems to be having no success with the triples. I just do not get the feeling that this skater is improving from year to year, and if she doesn't step it up a few notches, I don't see her making it out of South Atlantics.
The senior ladies who placed 10th and below in the freeskate just did not seem to be jumping on a level that would be at all competitive with the top ladies at sectionals, and several of them did not have the basic skating either. Kristin Shearer, Rhiannon Kallis, Jessica Cohen, Cindy Hsieh, and Lisa Plumeri really sucked the energy out of the building with their subpar performances in the free program. I have to wonder, if skating is such an expensive sport to participate in, why do some of these ladies continue to compete if they are clearly not going anywhere? I guess they must *really* love to skate...I suppose these lower-ranked senior ladies allow us to realize how great the top ladies really are.
JUNIOR LADIES FINAL FREESKATE
*This event was very close between all the ladies-- honestly any of the top 4 could have justifiably been placed first. Very high quality skating from all of these ladies. It looks like Junior Ladies at Easterns (and Mids) will be a great event this year.
1. Erica Archambault-- Aside from the 3sal-2t and two 2ax-2t, she landed a whole bunch of nice doubles which gave her enough content for the win despite only one clean triple. I would say she looked like a promising skater-- not quite there yet overall but looking well on her way. Good speed and coverage, spunky, nice sideways spin, good effort on footwork, overally a clean skate so it's not a total surprise that she won. The music was Madame Butterfly, but I was more wondering what AP McD would do with it than interested in what Erica was doing on the ice.....sue me! :) Erica seems to be one of the frontrunners to make nationals but she will need more than 1 triple to get through sectionals, though I hear she is working on that. :)
2. Jane Bugaeva- A much improved Jane this season! Her triple jumps are really coming along and she seems much more substantial overall this year. I would not be surprised to see her near the top at Easterns this season. We (all the people I was sitting with and me) all loved Jane's free program. Nice spins, good attack, and a cute ending.
3. Susannah Hall- This looked like a best-ever performance for her. Skated to Spartacus. Very complete and satisfying performance with great spirals and impressive charlotte, nice layback. The skate was a true joy to watch, one of the highlights of the event for me. As I watched this, I was thinking, "now THIS is what it looks like when a skater performs to her potential!" Susannah is a fantastic looking skater and seemed to have a great tan, her dark skin contrasting with the white dress she was wearing. I hope she can make nationals this season (out of Pacific Coasts I think) because I love this program and more people should get to see it!
4. Kristen Sheaffer- Finished 4th in this free skate though I though she'd get first. Kristen is a very strong skater and looked like the class of a very strong field. She wasn't really on with her jumps at this competition but I'd still be surprised if she didn't medal at Nationals. She had a couple pops so I guess the lack of a lutz and sal hurt her. Strong presentation to Spanish music, is what I wrote ("classical flamenco," says Louis). Good ice coverage, great overall program, and of course nice spins, including the closing yoga spin where she tucks her head under her foot. If she had landed 1 or 2 more triples, nobody would have been able to touch Kristen here. Great originality, costumes, and music choices make me a fan. Her SP to the ER theme was a lot of fun too, even though she didn't hit the jumps.
5. Anna Peng- This is an absolutely gorgeous skater!!! Skated to Butterfly Lovers (did justice to it!) and actually landed some of her jumps this time (every time I have seen her in the past she has had disasters). Great spins, movement, and gorgeous spirals. Graceful and really has *it* as a skater. Her SP inconsistencies could hurt her, but she definitely has the talent to make nationals as a junior this year should things go well for her at Easterns.
6. Alexandra Jasinowski finished 6th though I might have had her a little lower. Nice mover, nice layback, and pretty good program were the positive points. Her jumping technique was really ugly and her triple attempts were not close to being real triples. Cheats and underrotations all over the place, even her 2axel was low and suspicious...I'm curious to see whether she improves this later in the season. Nice 2z-2r-2r combo though. I'm not too optimistic about her chances this year, but you never know...
7. Leah Agler- No luck with the triples in this performance, though I think she has landed one or two in practice and other competitions. Nice spins, great look on the ice enhanced by years of ballet training, great extension on all her moves, including spirals, but she needs more speed and power, noted Ann who sat next to me. Promising young skater.
8. Maggie Leski- I thought I died and went to heaven when she started skating. She only landed one triple and no clean 2ax, but all of the *skating* was wonderful. Great layback, great extension, great footwork!!! (best ladies ftwk of the competition, I think), smooth/quiet blades, awesome spins and presentation. I guess she's skating for Poland. Note to Poland: promote her! She's fantastic! Note to Maggie: get yourself a 2ax and a few triples and you'll be a star!
9. Alexandra Tregre- This was a letdown after her wonderful short program, but the skating was still nice. I think she only managed 2ax, 2z, and 2f, the rest was pretty messy. Very good spinning, great movement and choreography, strong basics and nice spirals. Too bad, hope to see her spreading her joy again at regionals and sectionals. I wouldn't bet on her making nationals this season, but she's another one who is on the way up...
10. Amanda Moehling- Nice layback, pretty average overall, solid, but with boring music. Lots of 2-footed jumps and a couple falls left her with very little clean jump content. She'll have a tough field to face at regionals (and sectionals, if she makes it that far).
11. Kristen Mita- Jumps were a mess this time but she looked capable-- I've heard she has all the triples up through the flip in practice! Nice spins and good presentations. Maybe she's just not in top shape at this point in the season......very enjoyable skater.
12. Sarah Farley- Cool spins-- she's a little spitfire. Very neat and crisp movements. No triples or 2axels put her in last place but she is capable of better than this-- her qualifying skate was quite strong and she has a good chance of making a splash at New England regionals, though it's not a sure thing she'll make sectionals and she doesn't seem to have much of a shot of making nationals this year. I'll look forward to seeing her in the future.
JUNIOR MEN FINAL FREESKATE
Top 6 were very strong skaters.
1. Jason Wong- great win with a really successful program in terms of jumps. At this rate, he could be challenging for the podium at Nationals. Nice spins, good presentation, and solid skating. Great movement.
2. Michael Solonoski- I just love this program to Romeo and Juliet. Nice slow part in the middle to Kissing You with appropriate choreography. ;) Nice spins, mature skater, very nice jump technique. Clean skater with high quality elements and he could challenge at Easterns if he lands his jumps. Of all the Junior Men's freeskates I've seen over the past 2 years, this one and Brad Griffies' skate to Firedance (by Jesse Cook) are my favorites. His qualifying round free skate was also gorgeous and clean. He looked very well prepared for this competition. Nice guy who seems very personable, too.
3. Jeremy Abbott- Another skater who puts me on cloud 9....Great spin positions but needed more speed, strong movement, mature presentation, loved his style, AWESOME posture and positions, I mean, really incredible. He could probably use a little more power overall but what he has now is wonderful and unique for a male skater. I have a hard time describing it but hopefully you'll all see him for yourself someday...precious. I'm hoping he gets through Mids and he'll probably hit the 4-8 range at Nationals.
4. Casey McGraw- now this boy is a pretty strong jumper and has a nice camel, but this program did not do it for me. The skating was OK but the military (JFK?) music was really hard to get into...lots of military march snare drum stuff in the 2nd half that just got to be really redundant and tedious-- and it just was not musical. I just feel that this music is a mistake, but it's not the worst I've ever heard, and I think it should be fine for this season since he's still in juniors. This kind of program is not likely to earn him any fans though, and it would not cut it in seniors. Him and Jeremy Abbott have different strengths but overall are looking pretty similar in overall ability right now, so I have the same prediction for him this season as Abbott. Lots of strong skaters coming out of novice men from last season (Solonoski, Wong, Campbell, Abbott, McGraw......). I'm not sure there are any great novice men this year cause all the good ones moves up to juniors. I heard the novice men at Liberty were NOT enjoyable. I sat through the first 2 freeskates and decided life was too short and went back to the other rink. :p
5. Mauro Bruni- great skater, very nice spins and spirals, could have skated a little faster. Jumps are looking solid this year and nice music (Miss Saigon). Mauro looked confident and elegant in this competition. I appreciate the way he holds moves out, like one of his spirals. If he landed all his jumps, I think he could medal at nationals.
6. Adam Aronowitz had all kinds of jump problems in his Rach freeskate, but it is clear that he can land all the triple jumps through the lutz based on his other performances and practices here and at other competitions. I don't think he's inconsistent, this was just somewhat of an off night for him. Nice movement, speed, presentation, great death drop to sit spin, good spiral. Elegant, great spins, very strong program. Adam's skating is really coming along great, though he wasn't bad at all last year. I am predicting that he'll make the podium at Nationals if he can keep from flipping out and falling on the jumps that he is capable of landing.
7. Nathan Evancho had some nice jumps but one spin problem......overall nice spins, good speed and movement. Some good moves but really not commanding or sharp. He looks like he needs another year as junior to really be at the top of the field, but good for him to make it to the final free skate and I think he has potential.
8. Craig Ratterree- was awesome in the qualifying free skate and this was a notch down from that. Jumps were pretty messy-- very nice spins, nice moving, cool choreography, nice and light movement. I liked his music, pretty different from what you normally get. He wasn't quite in that top league overall with his skating and Ann pointed out that he needed more speed and power, which I agree with. This is a skater with soul on the ice though, I was able to feel what he was presenting. I hope to see more of this one. Loved the program.
9. Nick Kole- Presentation not too bad, but really sloppy on the jumps. All I wrote was, "What a mess!"
10. Joseph Lynch- Jumps were ok, no triples, smooth footwork, slow skating, easy choreography, spins were not good. Overall average skater.
I didn't watch any novice men or ladies, pairs were covered pretty well in other reports. Overall Jordan/Barrett continue to impress me, Varraux/Pelletier had an excellent free skate which was a major turnaround from their poor showing in the short program. Their twist seems to be the weakest element for them. I find both of these pairs to be creative, clever, and exciting and hope they have successful seasons. The 3 novice pairs were all at about the same level-- Katz/Lynch did an intermediate freeskate which I missed, but anyway, based on their SP, they are better than all the intermediates AND novices. I imagine they'll skate novice this year and should do well at Nationals. Phibbs/Patrick and Evora/Ladwig were impressive in the senior pairs exhibition. Elements were almost there, skating was STRONG! I wouldn't expect them to hit the top 10 at Nationals this year, but who knows what they could do in 2004. Senior Pairs in the US looks like it's finally picking up-- lots of pairs with good skating and sbs triples and throw triples. 2003 Nationals should have a really deep field barring too many injuries.
I had a great time at Liberty Open and would recommend going next year to any skating fan. I got to see a lot of skaters I had never seen before and came away with a good sense of where skaters are at at this point in the season. For some, you can tell who hasn't taken any time off vs. the skaters who just started training again for next season. Of course, some skated new programs and others kept the same ones from last year, so the results should not be taken too seriously. Yet, for the top skaters here, winning this was a big step to establishing themselves as a major contendor for regionals and sectionals down the line. Thanks to all the skaters, fellow fans, and organizers for making this such a fun competition to be at. Already looking forward to next year. Yours,
Haribobo