High school alpine racing got underway Tuesday at Alpine Meadows, bringing many of the area’s top young skiers out for a round of giant slalom.

The four-time Tahoe Basin Ski League giant slalom state champion North Tahoe boys’ team put together a dominant performance, posting eight of the 10 fastest times during the morning.

“It was an awesome showing by North Tahoe for our season opener,” said Coach Gretchen Sproehnle. “Our boys’ team, ranging from freshmen to seniors, showed incredible depth with eight Lakers in the top ten. We’re set up nicely for not only this season, but several years to come.”

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Lakers freshman Luke Buchanan picked up first place behind the two fastest runs of the day to finish with a combined time of 1 minute, 2.68 seconds. Sophomore teammate Toby Gajar, who is the defending state champion in giant slalom, finished in second place with a combined time of 1:03.00. North Tahoe’s Trent Carter was third, finishing with a combined time of 1:03.12.

Truckee sophomore Jason Roth broke up the run of North Tahoe skiers, claiming fourth with a total time of 1:03.61.

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From there, the Lakers posted the next three fastest times. Oliver Fralick (1:03.93) was fifth, Jackson Sanford (1:04.06) was sixth, and Rhett Lindsey (1:04.19) was seventh. Truckee’s Tyler Lamperti (1:04.70) finished eighth, followed by North Tahoe’s Emmet Roberts (1:04.98) and Bodie Hudson (1:05.60).

As a team, North Tahoe finished in first place with 217 points. South Tahoe was second with 172 points. Truckee had just four boys racing and managed to finish in third with 170 points.

On the girls’ side, Truckee freshman Amber Hansford opened her high school career in impressive fashion, posting the day’s two fastest runs to claim first place with a combined time of 1:02.62.

Teammate Audrey Rawson was second with a total time of 1:04.03. The Wolverines also had Whitney Wingard (1:05.32) in fifth, Susie Greeno (1:05.98) in seventh, and Haley Flaherty (1:06.44) in eighth. The Truckee girls took first place as a team, scoring a combined 213 points.

The North Tahoe girls finished second as a team with 197 points. Taylor Brook led the Lakers, finishing in fourth place with a combined time of 1:05.06. Eva Turk finished in sixth place with a combined time of 1:05.50, and Hallie Clute took ninth place with a total time of 1:07.59.

“The Truckee girls had a great day,” said Sproehnle. “Our girls were hot on their heels in second place. We’re looking forward to a fun, competitive season.”

Justin Scacco is a reporter for the Sierra Sun. Contact him at jscacco@sierrasun.com or 530-550-2643.