Huskies Set for 2023 National Championships Thursday & Saturday
LAKE PLACID, N.Y. – The Michigan Tech Nordic ski team is in New York for the 2023 NCAA Skiing Championships, being held in Lake Placid, hosted by Mt. Van Hoevenberg on Thursday and Saturday (Mar. 9 & 11).
The National Championships will start Thursday with the 5km/10km freestyle, with the 20km classic taking place on Saturday. Both competition days will start at 10 a.m.
A live stream of the event will be provided on NCAA.com, while live results can be found here.
The Huskies will showcase a complete team, with the men's team made up of Colin Freed, Skylar Patten and Adam Witkowski. The women's team is Olivia Laven, Anabel Needham and Henriette Semb. Of note, Henry Snider also qualified for the NCAA Skiing Championships and is a race alternate.
Tech is one of eight programs to qualify a full team after winning the Central Regional Championships by one point.
"This year I feel like it was a greater challenge than in years past," head coach Tom Monahan Smith said. "The depth of the central region is just getting stronger and it went down to the last race at the central region to determine those last spots. We're really proud to be representing Michigan Tech with a full squad at the National Championships."
Although this isn't the first time that the Huskies have qualified a full team in the Monahan Smith coaching era, assistant coach Kristen Monahan Smith was able to reflect on her time competing for the Huskies and share her feelings on how the program continues to climb to new heights.
"It's come a long way since my days," mentioned assistant coach Kristen Monahan Smith. "It means a lot to see the work pay off and see that Michigan Tech can be one of the best Nordic ski teams in the country. There are really specific moments that I won't forget in our time here as coaches. Thinking back to last year when Anabel was fourth-place, it was mind blowing but not really because we knew that we were capable of that."
The Black & Gold return an experienced crew to the National Skiing Championships with Semb embarking on her fourth NCAA trip. Witkowski is the lone Husky competing in his first National Skiing Championships, to put a bow on his incredible senior season.
Michigan Tech has a trio of Huskies that have already competed at Mt. Van Hoevenberg in Needham, Semb and Witkowski, competing in the FISU World University Games in January.
"It does make a big difference, the courses really do suit our strengths as a team," Head coach Tom Monahan Smith said of the courses at Lake Placid. "They are challenging courses, really hard climbing courses and we've got an amazing team of climbers and I'm very confident that our best races are to come and that's a really fun place to be in as a team going into the national championships."
One Last Thing
Last season at the NCAA Skiing Championships being held in Midway, Utah, the Huskies showcased the highest finish in program history for the women's team, posting a fourth-place finish backed by Anabel Needham's fourth-place finish in the 5km classic and Nea Katajala's seventh-place finish to earn Second Team All-America. Additionally, on the men's side, Skylar Patten earned Second Team All-America honors after a 10th-place finish in the 20km skate. The Huskies combined for a program-best sixth-place finish, while the men placed ninth overall as a team.