The Radcliffe ski team, missing two top skiers, managed a disappointing fourth place in a meet last weekend at Berkshire East, Mass.

UMass, host of the six team competition, captured first place, with Boston University second and UConn third.

Captain Nicole Bourgois, who pulled ankle ligaments, joined junior Karen Linsley on the injured list. Linsley has missed all three Radcliffe meets. "We really missed Nicole and Karen," coach Peter Tolnia said yesterday.

Freshman Cathy States finished tenth in Saturday's slalom competition and seventh in Sunday's giant slalom. Junior Lenni Wilson captured seventh in the slalom.

But on Sunday, Wilson skiied through the wrong end of a gate on her first run and then fell on her second run.

"Some of the gates are almost downhill," Tolnia explained. "If you lose your concentration for a second, you can take it backwards."

Radcliffe's poor performance will most likely be ignored in the final standings of the Women's Intercollegiate Ski Conference, because each team is allowed to drop its two worst scores. The WISC also includes B.U., UConn, and UMass.

Three upcoming meets will give Radcliffe a chance to improve its record of two thirds and last weekend's fourth. The finale of the regular season, hosted by Radcliffe on the weekend of March 6, will hopefully feature Linsley's return.