HANOVER, N.H. â€Ã‚“ After the first day of competition atthe 2003 NCAA Skiing Menâ€Ã‚™s and Womenâ€Ã‚™s National Collegiate Championships theâ€Ã‚˜Cats are in sixth place with 129 points. The University of New Mexico is leading the team race after the firstday with 169 points.

Hilary Patzer tied for eighth place with Karin Camenisch ofDenver with a time of 14:08.1 in the womenâ€Ã‚™s 5k freestyle technique.  Patzer was the top American finisher in theevent.  Tami Kochen was 16^th(14:34.0) as teammate Rachel Daw was 18^th (14:36.2) in the race.

The next event for the Nordic skiers is Friday, March 7^thwith the womenâ€Ã‚™s 15k classical.