Times Argus Sports Guide Winter 2018/2019 | Page 9

The Times Ar gus Winter Spor ts Guide 2018/2019
Championship Results
U-32 girls fuel XC skiing sweep
By JAMES BIGGAM
Staff Writer
RIPTON — U-32 senior Jesse Colnes
basked in the glory of a full-circle state
championship moment at Rikert Nordic
Center.
Colnes helped the Raiders close
out an 86-point victory over two-time
defending champion Middlebury,
sparking the fi rst boys-girls sweep for
U-32 Nordic. The U-32 girls followed
up a title from 2016, when Colnes
was a freshman. And with every other
skier set to return for next year‘s title
defense, this could be just the start of
the Raiders’ reign.
May Lamb (second), Jesse Colnes
(fi fth) and Ginger Knight (11th) paced
U-32 during the classical 5-kilometer
individual race. The top four skiers for
each team score points, so it was fi tting
that Shams Ferver (12th) and Ayla
Bodach-Turner (12th) fi nished with
identical times for U-32. Not far behind
were Anna Knauss (14th), Mia Smith
(18th) and Lucy Krokenberger (19th).
“Our girls were all just so close to
each other,” U-32 coach Mark Chaplin
said. “Middlebury and Harwood and
Burr and Burton all had strong indi-
viduals. But they didn’t have a group
of four or fi ve that could compete with
NORDIC SKIING
DIVISION I GIRLS
1. Mt. Mansfi eld ................. 94
2. CVU .............................. 108
3. Mt. Anthony ................. 163
4. Burlington .................... 232
5. Brattleboro ................... 252
6. Colchester .................... 318
7. BFA-St. Albans ............ 392
8. St. Johnsbury ............... 596
DIVISION II GIRLS
1. U-32 ................................ 72
2. Middlebury ................... 158
3. Bur and Burton ............ 181
4. Harwood ...................... 189
5. Peoples ........................ 273
PROVIDED PHOTO
U-32 skiers May Lamb, left, and Jesse Colnes take a break before the team relay at
Nordic state championships in Ripton.
us,” Chaplin said.
U-32 defeated the Tigers by 55 points
while beating the Highlanders by 45
points during the 5k individual classic
races. The Raiders won the relay by
over two minutes, led by Lamb, Knight,
Ferver and Colnes.
“We’re pretty strong and we have a lot
of depth,” Lamb said. “We always train
together and we’re always skiing together.”
6. Lamoille ........................ 323
7. BFA-Fairfax .................. 419
DIVISION I BOYS
1. Mt. Anthony ................. 100
2. Brattleboro ................... 114
3. BFA-St. Albans ............ 173
4. CVU .............................. 234
5. Mt. Mansfi eld ............... 269
6. Colchester .................... 302
7. Essex ............................ 431
8. Burlington .................... 449
9. Rutland ......................... 517
10. South Burlington ........ 736
DIVISION II BOYS
1. U-32 ................................ 67
That pack mentality has been
U-32’s bread and butter in Nordic and
cross-country running — two sports
where each team’s No. 4 fi nisher counts
for as many points as the No. 1 athlete.
“We’re a very committed team,”
Knight said. “We all bond together, so
we all know each other. It’s great seeing
someone ahead of you and catching up
to them and working together as a team.”
A year ago, the Raiders entered the
fi nal day of states at the same venue
and squandered a 21-point lead. The
chance of a repeat scenario was not in
the cards. By the time the relay rolled
around, nothing could stop U-32.
“We knew we had a lot of good
people from last year,” Colnes said.
“And a lot of our top skiers this year
were freshmen last year, and they’ve
improved so much. And you really
improve in time in skiing because you
learn the technique so much better.”
Harwood freshman Ava Thurston
stole the show individually, beating D-I
champ Quincy Massey-Bierman by 31
seconds. Thurston did not hear splits
from other racers because she took off
second out of 129 skiers during the
interval-start format.
In the end, it didn’t matter.
“I was mad that I had to go second
because usually I like getting splits,”
Thurston said. “And it helps me just
seeing people and being able to catch
them. But I think it was really lucky
today (because) the snow changed
part-way. I was close to fi nishing, and
the sun came out and all of sudden
the snow changed and people’s waxes
weren’t working. And mine worked
throughout.”
2. Middlebury ..................... 78
3. Lamoille ........................ 225
4. Burr & Burton ............... 307
5. BFA-Fairfax .................. 309
6. Lyndon ......................... 315
7. Harwood ...................... 340 9. Rice .............................. 313
10. Mount Mansfi eld ........ 314
11. Stowe ......................... 342
12. Burlington .................. 377
13. Colchester .................. 459
14. South Burlington ........ 507
ALPINE SKIING
DIVISION I GIRLS DIVISION I BOYS
1. Woodstock ..................... 70
2. Champlain Valley ........... 83
3. Lyndon ......................... 124
4. St. Johnsbury ............... 155
5. Burr and Burton ........... 177
6. Harwood ...................... 199
7. BFA-St. Albans ............ 224
8. Rutland ......................... 234
1. St. Johnsbury ............... 101
2. Stowe ........................... 148
3. Rutland ......................... 197
4. Burr and Burton ........... 209
5. Harwood ...................... 220
6. Mount St. Joseph ........ 228
7. Champlain Valley ......... 246
8. Colchester .................... 255
9. Woodstock ................... 264
10. Mount Mansfi eld ........ 278
11. South Burlington ........ 352
12. Rice ............................ 364
13. Lyndon ....................... 413
14. Thetford ..................... 508
15. Burlington .................. 515
16. Essex .......................... 551
GYMNASTICS
1. Essex ..................... 137.625
2. CVU ...................... 136.275
3. St. Johnsbury ............ 134.2
4. Montpelier ................. 128.6
5. South Burlington ....... 112.3
6. Milton .................... 109.075
7. Randolph .................. 85.45
8. Harwood ..................... 83.9
9. Middlebury .............. 71.325