CCSA Weekend Wrapup

With three weeks of the collegiate racing complete in the Central Region (although the CCSA season has not yet officially begun), patterns are already beginning to emerge. Notably NMU's Bryan Cook and Tami Kochen have emerged as the skiers to beat in the region. Cook took another two wins at this weekend's Houghton Holiday Inn Express Christmas Classic, capturing the classic title by almost a minute and the skate by just shy of a minute and a half (both races were ten kilometers). Kochen was similarly successful in the five-kilometer skate, winning by over a minute over teammate Jennifer Wygant. In the ten-kilometer classic, Kochen was pushed a bit more, as runner-up Kristina Owen from Michigan Tech was just five seconds out. When the CCSA season finally begins at upcoming U.S. Nationals, Cook will have the opportunity to see what, if any challenge UAF skiers can provide. Kochen meanwhile will be joined by and compete with teammate Lindsey Weier who will be back from the World Cups, and together they will face UAF's Johanna Turenen for the first time this season.

Had the competitions been scored, NMU would have once again emerged the easy winner for both men and women. Jenny Wygant's second in the skate and fourth in the classic further established herself as the likely number-three scorer for Wildcats upon Weier's return. Also scoring in Houghton was sophomore Laura Dewitt, who took fifth in both techniques. Bret Bedard and Phil Violett took third and fifth place respectively in the freestyle, while Ben Cline notched a second in the classic, followed by Adriaan Ostrander's third. NMU's team depth means that a number of the male athletes are able to place themselves in scoring position, but that the battle for who qualifies for NCAA Championships may be a tight one amongst themselves.

Johanna Winters and Andy Cheesebro once again led the UWGB Phoenix. Winters took fourth in the freestyle and then moved up a position to third in the classic, for another weekend in a row proving herself to be a contender for NCAA Championships qualification. Cheesebro had a stronger race on the skate day, finishing second; he was sixth in the classic. Trevor Walz also finished among the top-three for the Phoenix on both days, posting a 12^th in the skate and 18^th in the classic. For women, 2003 NCAA Championships veteran Heidi Hittner skied number two to Winters, finishing eighth in skate and seventh in classic.

Being as they were at home, MTU skied their entire roster (excluding a few athletes who had already headed out for the holidays), demonstrating the size and depth of their program. Leading the way, as always, for women was Kristina Owen, third in the freestyle and a close second, as mentioned above, in the classic. With traditional number two skier Liz Quinley absent, Andrea Metz, Rachel Robertson, and Laura Kangas all placed themselves in scoring position during the weekend. The men's side of things saw two less familiar names enter into the mix; Ben Beard led MTU in skate with a sixth, and freshman Erik Mundahl took seventh in the classic. Aaron Ditty (fifth in classic), Adam Airoldi (ninth in skate, eighth in classic), and Chris Miller (16^th in skate) were also among MTU's top-three.

While only NMU, MTU, and UWGB brought teams up to the Christmas Classic, many other collegians came up on their own. Erich Ziegler led the Gustavus men in the classic race, finishing 21^st, while teammate Justin Young, a freshman, skied to 25^th and 29^th. Macalester's Jakob Wartman made the trip, finishing 20^th and 28^th. St. Olaf was represented by Eric Olson (25^th in classic) and Audrey Weber (6^th in both races). St. Cloud State brought just two athletes, freshmen Abby Carroll (12^th in both) and Gwynn Barrows (17^th in both). St. John's University's Matt Heisel came up for the weekend and recorded 21^st and 31^st. Finlandia University skied three skiers. Jennifer Vaiu was 20^th in skate, Adam Huey was 33^rd in both, and Stephen Bosio was 32^nd in skate and 34^th in classic. While no doubt some of the central collegians were lost to holiday break, some others returned to the region from their respective "away college" and added to the excitement. The women's race saw Jean Polfus represent Dartmouth in the classic, finishing 8^th and Megan Wilder ski UC-Boulder to 16^th in the skate race. For men, Pasha Kahn represented Western State College (24^th in skate and 30^th in classic).

After a relatively short holiday break, central's top collegians are hitting the road for U.S. Senior Nationals, which serve as the first CCSA race of the year, the first NCCA Championships Qualifier, and the first chance to measure themselves against the top collegians (and seniors and juniors) in the country.

About the author... Corey Coogan reports on U.S. collegiate skiing throughout the season. Coogan has published an updated version of One Week in March: a manual for prospective Collegiate Nordic skiers. A devoted racer, she competes for Alpina/Madshus Racing and Finn Sisu ski shop.