FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Kirvesniemi, Hodgert, Lead 12 Incoming St. Scholastica Skiers for 2014

Anita Kirvesniemi of Simpele, Finland, and Reitler Hodgert of Bend, Oregon, lead 12 incoming skiers to the St. Scholastica Saints ski team for 2014.

Kirvesniemi will trade in her red and black of the University of New Mexico Lobos, for the blue and gold of the St. Scholastica Saints in 2014.  From her native Finland where Kirvesniemi’s family name is synonymous with ski racing, she brings with her eleven top-10 finishes in the Finnish Youth Championships as well as top-40 finishes in every Finnish senior national championship she’s raced, including 14th in the 2010 1.0km Classic Sprint.  Her mother, Marja-Liisa, is a three-time Olympic Champion while her father, Harri, is a past world champion.  Kirvesniemi found success as a ski racer in her late teens after focusing primarily on track and field in her youth.  Upon her transfer from New Mexico, she carries two more seasons of NCAA Division III athletic eligibility.

Kirvesniemi leads a group of four incoming women’s skiers for the Saints, including 2013 Michigan State Champion, Evelyn Delong of Calumet; Ellie Evans of Minneapolis (Robbinsdale); and Anna Nelson of Coon Rapids.

Hodgert graduated from Bend High School in 2011, taking two post-graduate years under coach and two-time US Olympian, Ben Husaby.  Hodgert spent 2012 and 2013 racing an elite domestic schedule after a strong junior career.  He has boosted his level in the past several years and looks to be the strongest new skier for the Saints in 2014.  Hodgert’s age and experience at national-level competition will bolster an already impressive group of eight incoming skiers for the Saints men.  

Minnesota high school and Junior Olympic standout, Harris Dirnberger of Hopkins, and 2013 Wisconsin State Champion, Kyler Berg of Pulaski  (Ashwaubenon), are two further marquee arrivals for the Saints, filling significant depth lost by the departure of two long-time varsity stand outs in 2013 graduates, Jeremy Hecker and Kasey Bacso, and leadership of 2-year team captain, Jake Morgan.   Incomers who are also looking for varsity starts for the Saints are Berg’s Ashwaubenon teammate, Jake Egelhoff of Oneida, WI;  Garrett Garberich of Brainerd; Jeremy Hecker’s younger borther Chris Hecker of Ham Lake (Andover); Steve Mueggenberger of Minneapolis (Coon Rapids); and Kyle Sagedahl of Bemidji.

Saints head coach, Chad Salmela is pleased with the incoming recruits and their potential positive impact on the Saints.  “We have a strong incoming group in both genders, and I think this will continue to buoy the team to ever greater things.”

In Jeremy Hecker, the Saints lost their most accomplished skier as the only two-time NCAA Championship qualifier and holder of the program’s top performance at those Championships with an 11th place finish in the 2013 Men’s 20km Freestyle.  “Filling the shoes of a skier like Jeremy is going to be hard in any program regardless of the level or depth,” says Salmela.  “But when Jeremy arrived as a freshman, we didn’t know what he would do, and it ended up being pretty significant.  That’s the exciting thing about any incoming class.  The possibilities are wide open.”

Kirviesniemi’s arrival is new territory for the Saints, as she is the first foreign athlete in the program’s 8-year history, as well as the team’s first transfer from a Division I ski program.  Salmela feels Kirvesniemi’s arrival is both a competitive and cultural boom for the women’s team while the entire Saints program is exactly the kind of environment Kirvesniemi can enjoy and thrive in.  “Here’s someone from a family whose name is synonymous with ski racing in a country that is culturally very tied to ski racing.  It’s safe to say that her maturity, experience, and outlook as a ski racer can and should have a positive influence on our women’s team, and in fact our entire program—both genders.  She won’t have to try to have an impact.  I feel having her around will just give our skiers more of a world view of ski racing.  Our women’s team this coming year will be the most formidable we’ve ever had by a decent stretch.”  The Saints women had their best campaign to date in 2013, including the program’s first NCAA Championship appearance by a female in incoming junior, Sharmila Ahmed.   The Saints women graduated nobody from their 2013 varsity team.  

“I don’t know that I’ve ever been more enthused about a coming season as this one,” beams Salmela.  “When you have a group that is this good to work with and you keep getting new great people, it makes everyone better—it makes things happen that might not have seemed possible before.  That’s fun and inspiring to everyone involved, and who doesn’t want to be a part of something like that?”

Incoming Saints Skiers
Women
 
DELONG    EVELYN    FR    CALUMET    MI    Calumet H S       
EVANS    ELIZABETH    FR    MINNEAPOLIS    MN    Robbinsdale Cooper H S       
KIRVESNIEMI    ANITA    JR    SIMPELE    FIN    University of New Mexico, Joensuun Yteishkoulun Lukio       
NELSON    ANNA    FR    COON RAPIDS    MN    Coon Rapids Senior H S    

Men
 
BERG    KYLER    FR    PULASKI    WI    Pulaski Senior H S       
DIRNBERGER    HARRIS    FR    HOPKINS    MN    Hopkins H S       
EGELHOFF    JACOB    FR    ONEIDA    WI    Pulaski HS       
GARBERICH    GARRETT    FR    BRAINERD    MN    Brainerd HS       
HECKER    CHRISTOPHER    FR    ANDOVER    MN    Andover HS       
HODGERT    REITLER    FR    BEND    OR    Summit H S       
MUEGGENBERG    STEVEN    FR    MINNEAPOLIS    MN    Coon Rapids Senior H S       
SAGEDAHL    KYLE    FR    BEMIDJI    MN    Bemidji HS