Tech Skiers Race at Yellowstone Ski Festival

WEST YELLOWSTONE, Mont. – Three Michigan Tech Nordic skiers raced at the Yellowstone Ski Festival on the Rendezvous Ski Trails over the weekend.

"We only had a few student-athletes competing this weekend, but they were satisfied with their results," Tech assistant coach Andrew Joda said. "We look forward to more competitions as the season begins."

On Friday (Nov. 29), Lisa Koenig advanced to the quarterfinal in the 1.3-kilometer women's sprint with an 18th place finish in 3:08.08. She finished sixth in her quarterfinal heat. Alice Flanders (3:17.52) finished 33rd in the sprint qualifier. On the men's side, Raphael Bechtiger finished 50th with a time of 2:41.63

"Sprint conditions were consistent, making it easy for the coaches to wax and the athletes to pick skis," said Joda. "We were very happy having Lisa qualify. It was bittersweet because she had a good quarterfinal heat but wasn't able to advance to the semifinal. The men's sprint field was very strong. It was a good learning experience for Raphael to see the level of talent that he'll be up against this year."

Flanders wrapped up the Festival for the Huskies with a 22nd place finish in the 10K freestyle on Saturday (Nov. 20). She was 11th in the under-23 age group in 29:36.0

"Alice was good all weekend," added Joda. "She dealt with some variable conditions on Saturday but skied very well."

The Huskies begin NCAA competition this weekend (Dec. 6-7) with the NMU Wildcat Open. The classic races are on Saturday with the freestyle on Sunday.