Six Men, Seven Women in top ten
BIWABIK, Minn. – The NMU alpine ski team wrapped up its weekend competition from Minnesota with the slalom, with both the men and women sweeping the podium once again.
The women’s and the men’s teams, respectively: won the team slalom, swept the podium, and had six and seven skiers in the top ten.
The women finished first with a total time of 4:22.31, ahead of UWMAD in second at 4:37.63 and UMD in third at 4:38.80. The women’s results can be found here.
The men finished first with a total time of 3:36,65, ahead of UWMAD in second at 3:47.22 and Michigan Tech in third at 3:52.57. The men’s results can be found here.
With the wins today, both the women and men won the combined giant slalom and slalom events for the weekend. That recap can be found here.
“The conditions were perfect,” said head coach Erik Lundteigen. “The cold temperatures lead to hard snow and great racing conditions, and both teams placed six athletes in the top ten, finishing off a great weekend for us. We’re now looking forward to competing at Spirit Mt. next weekend!”
Women’s Runs
The women claimed the top six finishes, led by Reagan Olli (A) in first with her combined time of 1:21.49. Olli opened her race with a 42.10 result time in her first run, the fastest time of the opening runs, en route to a gold.
Marisa Witte (A) was third after her first run, but after she posted the fastest second run result time (38.83), White moved into the second place position, finishing with a silver medal and time of 1:22.64.
Maddy Stern (B) rounded out the podium with her time of 1:25.18, followed by Kaylee Byrne (B) in fourth, Jacey Johnson (B) in fifth, and Onalee Wallis (B) in sixth.
Ainsley Kirk (A) was the third score used for the team scoring, as she finished 24th with a time of 59.24.
Men’s Runs
The men claimed the top five finishes and seven of the top ten spots, led by Aaron Grzelak (B) in first to claim gold with his time of 1:10.85. Grzelak posted the fastest result in run one with a time of 35.51, and the second fastest result in run two at 35.34.
Kayan Hopke (A) opened the team scoring for the men, finishing in the silver medal spot with his time of 1:11.20. Hopke had the second fastest result in run one before posting the fastest result of the day in run two, a time of 35.23.
Rounding out the podium with a bronze medal and the second team time used was Reed Heathman (A). Heathman posted the third-fastest results in both of his runs, with times of 36.40 and 35.79.
Andrew Truman (A) rounded out the team scoring in fourth with his time of 1:13.26, and like Heathman, Truman posted the fourth-fastest results in both of the runs, maintaining his position.
Nathan Dehart (B) finished fifth, Anthony Petkov (A) seventh, and Connor Abraham (A) eighth.
The ‘Cats head back to Minnesota next weekend, this time Spirit Mountain in Duluth on Saturday, February 1 and Sunday, February 2.
