BRAINERD — The WDC Nordic Ski team saw its first "varsity" competition of the season on Tuesday, Dec. 28.
The Wolverines were one of 12 teams at the annual Brainerd Nordic Invite, which was held at the Northland Arboretum.
The varsity event is run as a 5.5K continuous pursuit, which means there was no break for the racers when they switched from the classic style to skate skiing. Another "first" for the first-year Wolverine team.
The WDC girls finished ahead of two teams and placed 10th overall with 87 points.
Emma Ries (1:10:09.87) and Johanna Brunsberg (1:10:14.5) were 37th and 38th out of 42 racers.
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Bjorn Brunsberg was the only Wolverine in the boys' pursuit. He finished 29th out of 43 skiers in 52:18.
A steady snow made the race harder and slower for all of the competitors.
"Fresh snow is slow snow," as head coach Terry Olson explained.
Nate Heppner, in his first competition, was 65th out of 68 racers in the 2.3K JV race with a time of 39:12.
"Pretty good considering he only started skate skiing a month ago," Olson said of his race.
Olson summarised the event by saying the team did very well under some very difficult conditions. Some tenured Brainerd skiers noted that this was one of the most difficult races they've had.
Girls' team scores: 1. Brainerd 389, 2. Bemidji 374, 3. Moorhead 369, 4. Mora 365, 5. Alexandria 351, 6. Detroit Lakes 311, 7. Little Falls 155, 8. Willmar 135, 9. St. Cloud 104, 10. Wadena-Deer Creek 87, 11. St. John’s Prep 83, 12. TrekNorth 40
Individual winner: Liliana Schaeffer (Brainerd) 45:36.91
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Boys' team scores: 1. Brainerd 386, 2. Little Falls 373, 3. Moorhead 366, 4. Mora 351, 5. Bemidji 334, 6. St. John’s Prep 301, 7. TrekNorth 253, 8. Alexandria 241, 9. Willmar 129, 10. Detroit Lakes 95, 11. St. Cloud 53, 12. Wadena-Deer Creek 52
Individual winner: Zaine Braaten (Moorhead) 38:09.97
