LAKE ELMO, Minn. – It was a day of firsts at the Green Acres SuperTour stop, as an impressive display of depth lifted Michigan Tech to both the women’s and overall titles. The Huskies landed the top five spots in the women’s 15K freestyle event, including a career-first college win for Deedra Irwin. On the men’s side, Saint Scholastica’s Jeremy Hecker captured not only his first CCSA top spot, but also the first college win in the history of the Saints’ program. Hecker’s result in the 20K skate, coupled with teammate’s Paul Schommer’s second college podium finish in as many days, gave Saint Scholastica the program’s first ever team title as well, edging Michigan Tech by ...

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LAKE ELMO, Minn. - Michigan Tech sits atop of the leaderboard after the first day of the Green Acres SuperTour stop, as the Huskies’ Malin Eriksson and Mikko Harju turned in the conference’s two best performances in the women’s 5K and men’s 10K mass start classic. All told, the Huskies placed three skiers among the top five in both the men’s and women’s events, giving them an eleven-point overall lead over Saint Scholastica headed into Sunday. “I was pretty excited about how well the team skied today,” Michigan Tech head coach Joe Haggenmiller said. “Everyone was really happy with their skis. They went out and skied hard and skied fast. The venue here really has some challenge ...

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MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. - The second day of the Mayor’s XC Challenge at Theodore Wirth Park brought another two CCSA wins for Northern Michigan skiers. The Wildcats claimed the top two spots in both the women’s 10k and men’s 15K skate races, with Monica Markvardsen and Erik Soderman leading the charge. The results earned the Wildcats both the men’s and overall titles for the weekend, while NMU and Alaska tied for the women’s title with 145 points a piece. After qualifying for the NCAA championships a year ago, Markvardsen has quickly staked her claim as one the CCSA elite this season, landing back-to-back overall top five finishes at the Mayor’s XC Challenge. Markvardsen, who took fifth in Saturday’s ...

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MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. - An impressive display of depth from the Northern Michigan skiers has given the Wildcats a slim two-point edge over Alaska after the first day of the Mayor’s XC Challenge in Minneapolis, Minn. Northern’s Kjell-Christian Markset topped the CCSA podium for the first time in his young career in the men’s 10K classic at Theodore Wirth Park, while teammate Monica Markvardsen took the conference’s top spot for the third time this season in the women’s 5K classic. Weather conditions forced the race to be re-routed onto a 3K artificial snow loop, but the dizzying course did little to slow down Markset, who cruised to a top-ten overall finish in 23:04.1 – good enough for ...

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COLERAINE, MN - It was a Blue and Gold second day at the Hilltop Invitational, as Alaska claimed both the men’s and overall team titles with four podium finishes (including wins by both Erik Soederstrom and Marit Rjabov) in the men’s and women’s classic sprints. Northern Michigan claimed the women’s title for the weekend, ousting the Nanooks by a slim one-point margin at Mt. Itasca. Alaska’s Soederstrom powered his way to the top spot in the men’s A final, followed closely by teammate Logan Hanneman, who continues to impress in his freshman campaign with the Nanooks. Michigan Tech’s Mikko Harju rounded out the podium spots on the men’s side; the sophomore landing two top five ...

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COLERAINE, Minn. ­- Northern Michigan and Alaska skiers dominated the podium spots at the first day of the Hilltop Invitational, with the Wildcats’ Molly Burger claiming her first collegiate win in the women’s 5K skate and Alaska’s Tyler Kornfield taking the top spot in the men’s 10K freestyle event. All told, the Wildcats put two skiers in the top three in both the men’s and women’s events, giving them 76 points on the day and a six point lead over Alaska (69 points) in the team standings heading into Sunday’s classic events. Burger set the pace on the women’s side, completing her trek around the Mt. Itasca course in 11:48.5 – good enough for a ...

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Due to the current weather situation and the lack of snow in the weather forecast, the Saints Hilltop Invitational has been moved to Mt. Itasca in Colleraine, Minnesota. Updated event information can be found here: Saints Hilltop Invitational Information

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RUMFORD, MAINE – A quick turnaround after a long day of racing Thursday didn’t faze Northern Michigan’s Monica Markvardsen as the junior skier made it two CCSA top spots in two days on Friday, finishing as the conference’s top skier in the women’s 20K classic at U.S. Nationals. Alaska’s Tyler Kornfield, who earned a bronze medal in the freestyle sprints earlier in the week, led the charge for the CCSA men, storming to a tenth-place overall finish in the men’s 30K race. “Monica is finally healthy again this year,” Northern Michigan head coach Sten Fjeldheim said. “She struggled a bit with overtraining and maybe overreaching last year, but she’s gaining in confidence and is really ...

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RUMFORD, MAINE ­– Alaska’s Logan Hanneman and Northern Michigan’s Monica Markvardsen topped the first CCSA podium of the season, each earning top spot in their respective races at the U.S. Cross Country Championships in Rumford, Maine. Hanneman, a first-year skier for the Nanooks, completed the 15K freestyle around the Historic Black Mountain course in 31:04.3: good enough for 11th place overall. Markvardsen, meanwhile, finished her 10K skate in 27:41.9, taking 21st overall. “Logan had a great race today,” Alaska head coach Scott Jerome said. “He’s a true freshman, and for him to come out and be that strong not just within our region, but in the nation as well is pretty incredible.” Youth reigned supreme ...

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Northern Michigan’s Andy Liebner and Green Bay’s Carolyn Freeman have been named the CCSA Regional Skiers of the Year for 2010-2011. The duo was selected for the honor by the CCSA coaches at their annual meeting. Liebner wrapped up a stellar season for the Wildcats by earning double All-American honors at the NCAA Championships, taking eighth in the classic race and ninth in the freestyle event. Having finished on the CCSA podium in all but one event this season, including two wins at the CCSA Championships, Liebner earned all-conference first team honors and wrapped up the season as the conference’s second-best scoring skier. “Andy is the type of athlete who never stops trying to improve on all ...

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