Tenth in 7.5 Classic Individual Start
Midway, Utah — The NMU nordic ski team sent five student-athletes to the NCAA National Championships, with day one coming to a close.
On the first day of competition, both teams finished well in the 7.5k Classic Individual Start, with senior Luke Fricker receiving Second-team All-American honors.
Fricker finished in tenth place with his time of 19:12.6, which earned him a Second-team All-American. Fricker posted lap times of 6:10, 6:36, and was highlighted by his final lap time of 6:25, which was sixth-fastest among the field, spring boarding him from 12th to 10th and earning All-America honors.
Finishing back-to-back were Johnathan Clarke and Adrik Kraftson, who finished in 23rd and 24th with times of 20:02.1 and 20:03.9.
The men’s field was made up of 40 skiers from all over the country. John Hagenbuch of Dartmouth, who just recently represented the United States at the Olympics, won the race with a time of 18:25.3.
The NMU’s women’s team was led by Henriette Nilssen, who finished in 16th place overall and first among CCSA skiers with her time of 28:08.6. Nilssen posted lap times of 8:31, 9:41, and 9:55 on the looping track, moving up one spot from 17 to 16 on her final lap. Greta Leitheiser finished in 38th for NMU with a time of 32:17.9.
The women’s field also consisted of 40 racers. Rosie Fordham from the University of Alaska – Fairbanks won the race with a time of 24:08.00, which put her over a full minute in front of the second-place finisher.
The Wildcats amassed 51 team points, with the men earning 36 and the women 15, putting them at T12 overall. Among universities that don’t have NCAA alpine teams at the event, the Wildcats trail only Alaska-Fairbanks at 93.5. Michigan Tech is in third with 36.5.
Both teams look to finish the National Championship races strong on Saturday in the 20k Mass Start.
