RESULTS

ISHPEMING, Mich. (csssaints.com) – Sophomore Emil Book Bratbak (Asgardstrand, Norway/Lillehammer) became the first St. Scholastica skier to win a NCAA Central Region Championship race, winning Sunday's 20km classic at the Al Quaal Recreation Area.
 
Top Performers
Book Bratbak beat Northern Michigan University's Kjetil Banerud to the finish line by two seconds to win his first-ever Central Collegiate Ski Association (CCSA) points race with a time of 58:31. For Book Bratbak, it was eighth consecutive top-five finish with five podium finishes during that span. It is also his second race win of the season as he won at the season-opening Duluth CXC event in the 10km freestyle. It is his third race win of his career.
 
Book Bratbak also becomes the first men's skier in program history to sweep First Team All-Region accolades in the same season. He finished third in this event last season.
 
Nick Matelich (Bozeman, Mont./Bozeman HS (Montana State)) also posted a top-10 finish to earn All-Region accolades for the first time in his career. Matelich was 10^th with a time of 1:01:02. John Schwinghamer (Mora, Minn./Mora HS (South Dakota State)) was 11^th with a time of 1:01:07 to complete the scoring. Schwinghamer joined Book Bratbak as the only Saints to score in both races this weekend.
 
Junior Ryan Steger (Eagan, Minn./Eagan HS) was 14^th, first-year skier Lars Dewall (Lakeland, Minn./Stillwater HS) 15^th and senior Jack Christianson (Arden Hills, Minn./Mounds View HS) 16^th.
 
Team Scores
Northern Michigan won with 100 points and took the region championship for the weekend. Behind Book Bratbak's strong performance, the Saints were second on Sunday with 85 points, while Michigan Tech University was third with 83 points. For the weekend, Michigan Tech was second, while the Saints were third.
 
Up Next
The qualifiers for the NCAA Championships will officially be announced on Tuesday, March 3. The NCAA Championships begin on March 11 in Bozeman, Montana.