Complete Results

COLERAINE, Minn. (csssaints.com) – Prior to Friday's Central Collegiate Ski Association (CCSA) NCAA qualifier at Mt. Itasca, no Saints ski team, women or men, had ever won a CCSA event in which perennial powerhouse, Northern Michigan University, attended at or near full strength.

Senior Sarah Allen (Duluth, Minn./Duluth East HS (Northern Michigan)), junior Anita Kirvesniemi (Simpele, Finland/Joensuun Yhteiskoulun Lukio (New Mexico)) and junior Sharmila Ahmed (Savage, Minn./Burnsville HS) changed that in the women's 5km classic, to put the first women's win in the history books, and first win period, men or women, with Northern Michigan in the field.

Starting early in the order, Ahmed set the early best time at 3.5km, just shy of the high point of the course, but was eclipsed by several skiers as soon as the top seed started approaching the mark. Ahmed would drop to 11th at that point in the race.

Starting eight skiers from last, Kirvesniemi reached the 3.5km mark leading by just a second over Michigan Tech's Ulika Axelsson, and two seconds ahead of St. Olaf's Paige Schember.  Senior Brooke Adams (Spooner, Wis./Spooner HS ) added to the building excitement, clocking the fifth best time as she came through, putting the Saints in first, fifth, and ninth.

But as Allen came through the time check, it was clear that she had the race in control at that point, as she held an eight-second lead over Axelsson, which would stand at the point on the course. From that point, the course was nearly all downhill to the finish.  With everyone through, Allen and Kirvesniemi were atop the leader board, which was completely new territory for the program at this level.

Allen asserts that the downhills are not her strength, but the course turned out to be just her kind of course as she clung to the lead, despite losing five of the eight seconds she held over Kirvesniemi, to take the Saints' first-ever individual victory of any kind in an NCAA qualifier, posting a time of 16:09.1. 

Kirvesniemi just 2.5 seconds out of her first collegiate win took the second spot on the podium in 16:11.6.  Axelsson faded to ninth down the stretch opening the door for teammate, Lisa Koenig, to take third and her first podium finish, in 16:18.7. 

Ahmed moved up a spot to finish 10th and round out the scoring in a time of 16:30.6, while Adams faded to 12th, in 16:42.0.  The Saints won their first team title in history with a score of 77 points to Northern Michigan's 73. Michigan Tech finished third with 67.

"I was so excited that I almost couldn't stand the wait for the results after all the skiers had gone through the high point," said Saints head coach Chad Salmela. "It was such a tight race, that I just hoped everyone could stand up and stay on their feet on the downhill.  I just hoped Sarah believed in herself after getting that split. I just kept thinking, I hope eight seconds is enough!"

In the end it was, as Allen becomes the first Saints program skier, men or women, to win a CCSA event.

"I just closed my eyes because I couldn't see," according Allen, referring to the course's biggest downhill, as heavy snowfall made visibility difficult for everyone.
   
"I was really tired (in the finish)," according to Kirvesniemi, before results were posted. "I don't know if I hung on (to second)."  But in the end, Kirvesniemi almost took the win herself; gaining nearly five seconds on her teammate, while distancing herself over third place by seven seconds between the high point and the finish.

"This is obviously a very special day for the program, for me as the coach, but most of all for the ladies on this team," said Salmela. "Sarah and Anita are both at their second institution, trying to be ski racers when it didn't work out for them at the first school they tried to ski at and Sharmila has had a rough start to the season.  For the three of them to post a win today is special to me because it should be special to them. It shows them what they can do. It shows them that they can ski race at a very high level if they just have fun and believe in themselves. I'm so proud of them."

The Saints finish up the Mt. Itasca NCAA qualifiers with at 5km freestyle Saturday.