Men’s 20K freestyle results
Women’s 15K freestyle results

For the second straight day, a Northern Michigan man and an Alaska woman earned the conference crown at the CCSA Championships, as the Wildcats’ Erik Soderman again took top spot in the men’s 20K mass start freestyle and the Nanooks’ Aly McPhetres edged NMU’s Rosie Frankowski to win the women’s 15K event at Mt Itasca.

Despite a strong showing in both genders from Alaska, however, it was Northern Michigan’s day, as the Wildcats swept the men’s, women’s and overall team titles for the four-race CCSA Championships.

“Everyone’s really happy to have won,” NMU head coach Sten Fjeldheim said. “It was an interesting format this year, having the sprints and the relays involved. I think our team has really been firing on all cylinders this weekend though, and we are happy with how things turned out.”

There was even more déjà vu about Sunday’s men’s race – Soderman and teammate Kyle Bratrud again took the top two spots, just as they did in Saturday’s classic race. According to Fjeldheim, however, it took every ounce of energy his racers had to hold onto the podium spots.

“UAF busted apart the pack right away,” he said. “They really pulled out at a really hard pace – them, our guys and (St. Scholastica’s) Jeremy Hecker put the hammer down from the start. It was great racing and awesome competition.”

While Soderman and Bratrud took the top two spots, Alaska’s Lex Treinen earned the bronze medal position, finishing just four seconds behind Bratrud. The Nanooks’ Michael Fehrenbach would take fourth, slightly behind the lead trio, while Northern Michigan’s third scoring skier, George Cartwright took fifth, wrapping up the men’s title for the Wildcats.

St. Scholastica’s top skier on the day, and one of the CCSA most consistent performers on the year, Hecker just missed out on a ninth-straight top-five finish, as his time of 55:56.9 put him in sixth on the afternoon. A pair of Alaska skiers, Jonas Loffler and Max Olex, placed seventh and eighth, respectively, while NMU’s Chris Bowler and Michigan Tech’s Matt Dugan rounded out the top ten.

On the women’s side, the competition was equally as fast and furious – as McPhetres and Frankowski battled back and forth for most of the afternoon.

“Aly is really an excellent downhill skier – I was impressed with her downhill ability,” Fjeldheim said. “Every time Rosie would try and pull away , [McPhetres] would close that gap on the downhill.”

In the end, McPhetres would seize on a late stumble from Frankowski to earn her first CCSA title. Frankowski, forced to settle for second place, still finished nearly a full minute ahead of the third placed skier: Alaska’s Crystal Pitney, who earned the final podium spot in 49:37.8.
Northern Michigan’s Jordyn Ross was next across the line, followed by a pair of Nanooks in Heather Edic (fifth) and Rebecca Koneieczny (sixth). NMU’s Mary Kate Cirelli took seventh overall to round out a solid weekend for the freshman, while Alaska’s Raphaela Sieber, Gustavus’ Erica Hett and St. Scholastica’s Sharmila Ahmed rounding out the top ten.

With today’s results, Northern Michigan captured the men’s title with 303 points, while St. Scholastica landed its best-ever CCSA Championship finish by taking second with 252 points. Alaska’s rounded out the podium by taking third on 242 points.

On the women’s side, the Wildcats were again on top, albeit by a slightly slimmer margin. NMU’s 292 points earned them the conference crown by 20 points over Alaska’s 272 points. Michigan Tech took the bronze on the women’s side, finishing with 225 points.

Overall, NMU’s 595 total points gave them a comfortable victory over Alaska, who finished second with 514 points. Michigan Tech took third with its 454 points, just beating out St. Scholastica by a single point.

The CCSA skiers now head to their final NCAA qualifiers of the season, as Michigan Tech hosts the Central Region championships on Feb. 23-24.

Men’s 10K results
Women’s 5K results

Northern Michigan’s Erik Soderman and Alaska’s Raphaela Sieber each earned their first conference titles on Saturday, cruising to victories in their respective interval start classic races at the CCSA Championships at Mt. Itasca.

Despite Sieber’s victory, however, Northern Michigan, who claimed four of the six podium spots on offer today, remains on top in both the men’s, women’s and overall team standings heading into the final day.

With just four qualifiers remaining in the CCSA season, the tension is beginning to heat up in the race for NCAA berths. Soderman, a national champion in the freestyle event last year, took a major step toward confirming his spot on Saturday, turning in another impressive classic performance to earn the CCSA crown. The sophomore finished his 10K in 26:14.2 – good enough for a five-second margin of victory.

Teammate Kyle Bratrud, who has already pre-qualified for this season’s NCAAs, turned in the second best time on the day, as his time of 26:19.7 bested everyone but Soderman.

Alaska’s top men’s skier on the day, Jonas Loeffler, earned a podium spot (and a crucial 25 points for his team) with his time of 26:24.7. St. Scholastica’s Jeremy Hecker, who came into the weekend as the CCSA’s second-ranked skier, did his NCAA chances no harm with a solid fourth-place finish in 26:27.8.

Northern Michigan’s third scoring skier, Chris Bowler, posted the conference’s fifth-best time: his 26:42.0 ensuring the Wildcats’ claimed three of the top six spots on the day. Alaska Michael Fehrenbach placed sixth in the CCSA (seventh overall) to land 22 points for the Nanooks.

Seventh-place in the conference fell to Northern’s George Cartwright, as his time of 26:49.0 put him just above St. Scholastica’s John Wessling, who took eighth in the CCSA and ninth overall. Alaska’s Lex Treinen and Michigan Tech’s Luke Gesior rounded out the conference’s top ten.

On the women’s side, it was Sieber’s day, as she continues to show signs that she is back to her best form. The German native bested the field by a full 13 seconds, tearing through her 5K in just 15:05.1.

Northern Michigan’s Hannah Boyer, who won the classic event at the Saints Invitational last month, continued to demonstrate her prowess in the tracks as well, earning a second-place finish in 15:18.6. Boyer’s time meant teammate Jordyn Ross would have to settle for a third-place finish; the junior earning bronze with a time of 15:19.3.

The Wildcats third-scoring skier, Mary Kate Cirelli, took fourth place in the CCSA (fifth overall) with her time of 15:24.1, finishing just ahead of Saint Scholastica’s Sharmila Ahmed, who took fifth (sixth overall).

Michigan Tech’s top skier, Deedra Irwin, took sixth in the conference with her time of 15:26.7, followed closely by a pair of Alaska racers in Theresia Schnurr (seventh in CCSA) and Rebecca Koneiczny (eighth in CCSA). Northern Michigan’s Rosie Frankowski and Alaska’s Crystal Pitney rounded out the conference’s top ten.

With today’s results, Northern Michigan lead the overall team standings by a comfortable margin – the Wildcats 447 points putting them well ahead of second-placed Alaska’s 369 points. Both St. Scholastica and Michigan Tech finish the day with 348 points, making the shuffling for podium positions interesting going into the CCSA Championships final day tomorrow.

Full men’s and women’s team scores are as follows:

Men’s
Northern Michigan: 227 points
St. Scholastica: 196 points
Michigan Tech: 174 points
Alaska: 172 points
Green Bay: 124 points
Gustavus Adolphus College: 101 points
St. Olaf College: 77 points

Women’s
Northern Michigan: 220 points
Alaska: 197 points
Michigan Tech: 174 points
St. Scholastica: 152 points
St. Olaf College: 123 points
Gustavus Adolphus College: 104 points
Green Bay: 99 points
St. Cloud State: 17 points

Northern Michigan remained on top in the second day of the CCSA Championships, as both the Wildcats’ top relay teams earned victories in both the women’s 3 x 5K classic race as well as the men’s 3 x 10K event.

The Wildcat women’s team, made up of Rosie Frankowski, Jordyn Ross and Mary Kate Cirelli, each turned in the top times of their respective legs to cruise to a comfortable 25-second victory. Alaska’s team of Marit Rjabov, Julia Ebner and Heidi Brook proved to be NMU’s toughest competitors, taking second with a time of 39:53.1.

Michigan Tech’s squad of Deedra Irwin, Sarah Daniels and Rachel Mason took third in the relay, while Northern Michigan’s second relay team, made up of Malin Eriksson, Elizabeth SImak and Megan Edic, took fourth among CCSA skiers.

On the men’s side, the Wildcats’ team of Kyle Bratrud, George Cartwright and Erik Soderman stormed out to an early lead and never looked back, completing their 30K in 1:07:19.1 – nearly a minute and a half better than their closest competitors.

St. Scholastica’s team of Scott Johanik, John Wessling and Jeremy Hecker took silver in the event, crossing the line in 1:08:43.2, followed closely by a pair of Michigan Tech squads. The Huskies first squad, made up of Sondre Sandvik, Matt Wong and Luke Gesior, took third in 1:08:43.4, and the team’s second grouping (Matt Dugan, Thomas Kendrick and Jay Woodbeck) finished fourth in 1:10:45.2.

With their wins today, the Wildcats extend their lead in the CCSA Championship standings, as the NMU women topped the table on Sunday with 78 points. Alaska’s 69 point haul put them in second place on the day, while Michigan Tech took third with 60.

On the men’s side, NMU again took top honors with 78 points, followed by St. Scholastica in second with 69 points. Michigan Tech’s 60 points put them in third place on the day, followed by Alaska with 51.

The CCSA skiers now enjoy a weekend off before the deciding events of the CCSA Championships – an individual start 10K classic race at Mt. Itasca on Feb. 16, followed by a 20K mass start freestyle on Feb. 17.

Full results and team scores from relays

Northern Michigan’s George Cartwright and Alaska’s Marit Rjabov kicked off the first weekend of the CCSA championships in style, earning the top spots in the A finals of their respective skate sprints at the Al Quaal Recreation Area in Ishpeming, Mich.

“It was a good day for us today,” Northern Michigan head coach Sten Fjeldheim said. “We had three guys in the A final, and I was really happy with the way George raced today. He just had a very controlled, smart race.”

After showing his sprinting ability by edging out a photo finish in the Saints Invitational classic race last weekend, Cartwright once again came out on top in the men’s final Saturday. Michigan Tech’s Raphael Bechtiger stormed out of the gates to an early lead, but Cartwright quickly closed the gap over the 1,650 meter course, eventually winning by a comfortable margin.

Saint Scholastica’s Jeremy Hecker edged past Bechtiger as well, taking the silver medal spot for the fourth straight CCSA event: a remarkable display of consistency from the senior Saint skier. Bechtiger would take third in the event, followed by NMU junior Ben Hugus.

On the women’s side, Alaska’s Rjabov earned her first CCSA win of the season, holding off second-placed Green Bay’s Kailey Mucha in the women’s A final. Northern Michigan’s Elizabeth Simak took third in one of her best performances in Wildcat colors to date, followed by Michigan Tech’s Sarah Daniels in fourth, and NMU’s Jordyn Ross in fifth.

“Jordyn looked as good as anyone in the semifinal, and I thought she was going to be tough to beat,” Fjeldheim said. “Unfortunately, she just ran out of gas a little bit.”

Cartwright’s win and Simak’s performance ensure that Northern Michigan ends the first day of the CCSA Championships with a slight edge in both the men’s and women’s standings. The Wildcat men sit on top of the CCSA table with 73 points, followed by Saint Scholastica in second with 65 points with Michigan Tech just a point behind in third.

The NMU women, with 67 points, sit just about Michigan Tech’s 63 points – the Huskies sitting in second thanks to solid performances from Daniels, Lynn Duijndam and Deedra Irwin. Alaska sits third on the women’s side with 60 points.

The CCSA championships continue tomorrow with a classic relay event. The women’s 3 x 5K race kicks things off at 10 a.m. EST, followed by a men’s 3 x 10K at noon.

Complete results

Full team scores

Women:
1. Northern Michigan: 67 points
2. Michigan Tech: 63 points
3. Alaska: 60 points
4. St. Scholastica: 48 points
5. Green Bay: 47 points
6. St. Olaf College: 40 points
7. Gustavus Adolphus College: 8 points

Men
1. Northern Michigan: 73 points
2. St. Scholastica: 65 points
3. Michigan Tech: 64 points
4. Alaska: 54 points
5. Green Bay: 41 points
6. Gustavus Adolphus College: 33 points
7. St. Olaf College: 27 points

Full results

On an afternoon with plenty of drama and excitement, it was Northern Michigan left celebrating in the end, as victories for George Cartwright in the men’s 20K freestyle and for Rosie Frankowski in the women’s 15K skate handed the Wildcats the overall team title at the Saints Invitational on Sunday.

Cartwright edged both College of Saint Scholastica’s Jeremy Hecker and teammate Erik Soderman in a photo finish to capture the title in the men’s 20K event – the trio all finishing within three-tenths of a second of one another to conclude one of the most exciting races in the CCSA this season. See photo of men’s 20K finish.

“It was a toss-up with about 100 meters to go,” Saint Scholastica head coach Chad Salmela said. “Jeremy really wanted to win this race, and there was a big crowd there cheering him on, but I knew George was a good sprinter as well and he just pulled ahead right at the end.”

Hecker’s consolation was his second silver medal finish of the weekend, and third in as many races – a string of results that should put the senior firmly in the running for one of the region’s NCAA berths come March.

“In the past four years, Jeremy’s struggled to have two good races back-to-back,” Salmela said. “So I think what we are seeing now is just a maturity thing, and it’s nice to see.”

Soderman settled for third, and his third podium spot of the weekend, after winning the 10K classic race on Saturday.

Green Bay’s Matt Nichols produced his best race of the season to date, taking fourth place after settling just behind the lead trio but comfortably ahead of Northern Michigan’s Chris Bowler, who took fifth in 54:41.5.

A pair of Saint Scholastica skiers, Scott Johanik and Jake Richards, were next across the line, earning sixth and seventh place, respectively.

“It’s great to see the depth of our team,” Salmela said. “It’s pretty cool to see guys like Scott and Jake stepping up. I think, on both the men’s and women’s side, we’ve got a more professional, more experienced team than we’ve ever had before.”

Gustavus Adolphus College’s Josh Blankenship took eighth, completing his 20K in 55:51.8, while Michigan Tech’s Kyle Hanson (ninth) and Jay Woodbeck (10th) rounded out the top ten.

Determining a winner on the women’s side was a little more straightforward, though, as Frankowski pulled away and never looked back, taking the top spot with a time of 48:38.9 – a full minute ahead of her nearest competition.

Michigan Tech’s Lynn Duijndam earned her second CCSA podium spot of the season, taking second place with a time of 49:43.2. Saint Scholastica’s Sharmila Ahmed crossed the line third in the CCSA, concluding an impressive weekend for the sophomore after she took second in Saturday’s classic event.

“We’ve found that Sharmila needs a lot of races to race well,” Salmela said. “This weekend was her seventh and eighth races, and things are starting to click. She’s coming into form right now and we just want to keep this trend going.”

Northern Michigan’s Jordyn Ross landed the CCSA’s fourth spot, crossing the line just ahead of teammate Hannah Boyer, who finished as the Wildcats’ third scoring skier in sixth place (fifth in the CCSA).

Michigan Tech’s Sarah Daniels earned the conference’s sixth spot (seventh overall) with her time of 50:38.8, while Kailey Mucha took seventh in the CCSA and eighth overall in 50:43.7.

Gustavus’ Erica Hett landed her second top ten in as many days, placing eighth in the CCSA and ninth overall. Green Bay’s Hanne Guthrie and St. Scholastica’s Kelsey Dickinson rounded out the conference’s top ten.

The combined scores for the weekend gave Northern Michigan a total of 299 points, earning them the team title over second-place Saint Scholastica, who earned 258 points this weekend. Michigan Tech earned third with 233 points.

The CCSA skiers now head to Al Quaal for the first round of the CCSA Championships next weekend, starting with a 1.5K freestyle sprint on Feb. 2.

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Northern Michigan and College of Saint Scholastica skiers dominated the podium positions in the classic races at the Saints Invitational on Saturday, with the Wildcats’ Erik Soderman earning his second win of the season in the men’s 10K event and freshman teammate Hannah Boyer topping the field in the women’s 5K.

All told, Northern Michigan would ring up four of the six podium spots up for grabs at Giants Ridge, though hosts Saint Scholastica managed to nab the silver medal spots in both the men’s and women’s interval start events.

“It was a good day for us today,” Northern Michigan head coach Sten Fjeldheim said. “It was a really technical course – they’ve hosted the World Cup here before and it really keeps you on your toes. So we were pleased with how things went.”

The reigning NCAA champion in the free technique, Soderman showed his double poling wasn’t half bad either on Saturday, completing his 10K in 33:15.3 and besting his nearest competitor by nearly 20 seconds.

“It was a good classic race for Erik,” Fjeldheim said. “We’ve been working on changing his rhythm a little bit in classic races, and it went well today.”

Another participant at the NCAAs a year ago, Saint Scholastica’s Jeremy Hecker, earned a silver medal for the second consecutive race. The senior, who was named the CCSA skier of the week last week, kept a pace of 2:53 per kilometer to finish the race in 33:35.2.

Northern Michigan’s Chris Bowler took third with his time of 33:54.5 – a second straight podium finish for him as well – while St. Scholastica’s John Wessling turned in one of the best races of his Saints’ career to earn fourth place overall, in 34:17.8.

Michigan Tech’s Luke Gesior skied his way into a top-five finish, taking fifth overall with a time of 34:23.5. Northern Michigan’s third scoring skier, George Cartwright, continued his steady season for the Wildcats’ with a sixth place finish as well.

St. Scholastica’s Scott Johanik finished as his team’s final scoring skier, taking seventh overall in 35:10.2. Michigan Tech’s Thomas Kendrick posted the conference’s eighth-best time – the freshman from Minnesota earning the first top-ten of his young career in 35:11.6.

A pair of Saint Scholastica skiers rounded out the top ten, as Nick Power and Chris Parr placed ninth and 10th, respectively. The Saints’ made home course advantage count, finishing with five of the top ten skiers on the men’s side.

On the women’s side, Northern Michigan’s Hannah Boyer earned her first collegiate win, as the freshman sailed through her 5K in 19:15.3.

“Hannah looked really good today,” Fjeldheim said. “Technically, she was pretty good, there’s still some work we have to do. But when you get a bib on her, she’s just really competitive – that’s her biggest strength.”

St. Scholastica’s Sharmila Ahmed, quietly becoming one of the most consistent performers in the CCSA, landed her best-ever conference finish on Saturday, finishing just ten seconds behind Boyer for a second-place result.

Northern Michigan’s Jordyn Ross grabbed the conference’s final podium spot, as she bested a pair of Wildcat teammates to earn third place. Teammate Mary Kate Cirelli was unfortunate to miss out on her first ever podium spot. The freshman earned fourth place with her time of 19:49.0 – just six-tenths of a second off of Ross’ pace.

Northern Michigan’s Malin Eriksson took fifth place, stopping the clock in 19:50.8 to ensure the Wildcats nabbed four of the top five places on the women’s side.

Gustavus Adolphus College’s Erica Hett turned in her best race of the young season to grab sixth place, crossing the line in 20:03.7. St. Olaf’s Paige Schember earned seventh place in the CCSA, and eighth overall, in 20:13.1.

Green Bay’s Kailey Mucha landed her team’s top finish on the day, placing eighth in the CCSA and ninth overall, while NMU’s Rosie Frankowski (ninth) and Michigan Tech’s Sarah Daniels (10th) rounded out the CCSA’s top ten.

The CCSA skiers return to Giants Ridge tomorrow for the final day of the Saints Invitational, which begins with a 15K mass start skate for women at 10 a.m. CST, followed by a 20K mass start freestyle event for men at noon.

Complete results [PDF]

It was another big day for Alaska at the second day of the Tour de Twin Cities SuperTour stop, as the Nanooks, led by a resurgent Raphaela Sieber, swept the college podium in the women’s 15K mass start classic and saw Jonas Loeffler claim his first college win in the men’s 20K event at Wirth Park in Minneapolis.

“I’m really happy for our team, and for our women,” Alaska head coach Scott Jerome said. “We had a good day yesterday, but we were still kind of holding our breath on the classic race today. But it worked out and I’m really happy for Raphaela. Any time you can sweep the podium, it’s really exciting.”

After battling illness during the early part of the season and at U.S. Nationals, Sieber looks to be hitting her stride once again, as she raced her way to an impressive seventh place overall finish Sunday. Sieber crossed the line in 47:21.7 – a good 54 seconds ahead of her nearest collegiate competition.

Teammate Aly McPhetres, who also earned her first collegiate win in the skate race yesterday, completed a standout weekend for herself with a second-place collegiate finish, and ninth-place overall, in 48:25.4. The Nanooks’ Rebecca Konieczny took third in the CCSA with a tenth-place overall finish of her own, in 48:38.0.

“Aly had her best classic race ever today,” Jerome said. “That’s what she needed to do if she wants to make it to NCAAs, so this is a good start for her.”

Northern Michigan’s Jordyn Ross took fourth in the CCSA with her 11th-place overall finish in 48:41.3, just edging out Alaska’s Theresia Schnurr, who finished 12th overall and fifth in the CCSA in 48:41.8.

A solid performance from Green Bay’s Kailey Mucha saw her earn the conference’s sixth-best finish, taking 15th overall in 49:18.9. A pair of Northern Michigan Wildcats were next across the line – Mary Kate Cirelli and Hannah Boyer earning 17th and 18th place, respectively.

Alaska’s Heather Edic’s 19th-place finish was good enough to earn her ninth among collegiate skiers, while Saint Scholastica’s Sharmila Ahmed rounded out the CCSA top ten, edging NMU’s Rosie Frankowski by just under a second to earn a 20-place overall finish.

On the men’s side, Loeffler separated himself from the rest of the CCSA pack to claim his first ever conference win, earning an eighth-place overall finish with a time of 48:06.7.

“This was a huge race for Jonas,” Jerome said. “It will be a really big boost for him. He was actually having a really good race at U.S. Nationals in the 30K before he broke a pole, so it was good to see him get his first CCSA win today.”

Saint Scholastica’s Jeremy Hecker took the silver spot among collegiate skiers, completing his 20K in 48:20.2. An NCAA participant a year ago as part of a landmark season for Saint Scholastica, Hecker too enjoyed a fine stay at Wirth Park, earning a fifth-place finish in the skate race yesterday.

Northern Michigan’s Chris Bowler rounded out the CCSA podium, finishing 18th overall with a time of 40:30.8. Alaska’s second scoring skier, Michael Fehrenbach, just missed out on his first CCSA podium spot, coming in fourth just three-tenths of a second behind Bowler.

“Michael actually had a hard fall today that cost him a lot of positions,” Jerome said. “He could have easily had a top-ten finish today as well.”

The Nanooks’ Tyler Kornfield completed a solid weekend of racing with a fifth-place collegiate finish and 22nd overall on Sunday, followed closely by Northern Michigan’s George Cartwright and Erik Soderman, who took 24th and 26th overall, respectively.

A pair of Nanooks, Lex Treinen (33rd overall) and Max Olex (36th overall) were next across the line for the CCSA, meaning Alaska earned five of the region’s top-ten spots on Sunday. Michigan Tech’s Matt Wong rounded out the top ten with his 39th place overall finish.

“It was a good weekend for us,” Jerome said, “and having a good final race makes the flight home a lot easier.”

The CCSA skiers now head to Giants Ridge for their next NCAA qualifier next weekend, with races being held Jan. 26-27.

Full race results >>