Feb. 15, 2009
Women's Results Day 1 
Men's Results Day
Camp Ripley, MN - Theresia Schnurr took another giant step in the right direction towards qualifying for the NCAA Championship on Saturday afternoon as she finished second overall in the women's 5K classic race .
Schnurr finished the race in 15:28 and paced the Nanooks as the women currently sit in second after day one of the fourth CCSA-NCAA qualifier. Marie Helen Soderman of Northern Michigan won the race with a time of 15:15.
Julia Pierson was the second Alaska skier to finish as she crossed the line in 8th place with a time of 15:59. Pierson also is skiing well enough to see herself racing at the championships in Maine on March 11-14.
Other notable performances were Anna Coulter in 15th place, and Elisabeth Habermann in 17th place. The team scored 81 points overall, and trail Northern Michigan by 10 points.
Erik Soderstrom paced the men, who finished the team competition in third after the first day. Soderstrom's 10K classic time of 29:39 earned him an 8th place finish, and teammate Oyvind Watterdal was one spot behind with a time of 29:43.
John Parry finished in 14th and Ray Sabo in 16th for a men's side that skied very well in a crucial NCAA qualifying race. The Nanooks gained 77 points and are trailing Northern Michigan and Michigan Tech heading into tomorrows freestyle races.
After completion of tomorrow's races, the Nanooks will have a good idea where they stand in terms of qualifying for the NCAA Championships. Because the Blue and Gold missed an NCAA qualifier, the Nanooks will now the two classic times and the two freestyle times they need for qualifying.
Women's Results Day 2
Men's Results Day 2
Camp Ripley, MN - Theresia Schnurr once again led the Alaska women at Camp Ripley, and Oyvind Watterdal paced the men, as the Blue and Gold completed their fourth NCAA qualifier on Sunday afternoon at Camp Ripley in Little Falls, Minnesota.
After a 2nd place finish in the 5K classic style race yesterday, Schnurr finished this mornings 15K freestyle mass start in 7th place with a time of 42:34 to cap off a very strong weekend for the German native.
The finish was jam-packed as skiers 2-through-11 finished all within three seconds of each other. Along with Schnurr were twins Anna Coulter and Julia Pierson in that group. Coulter placed 9th and Pierson was one second behind in 11th.
Junior Olympic qualifier Rebecca Konieczny crossed in 16th at 43:39, and Elisabeth Habermann posted a time of 44:02, good for 22nd place.
The top finisher for the Nanooks in the men's 20K freestyle mass start was Oyvind Watterdal, as he was just 28 second of the pace of first place finisher Martin Banerud of Northern Michigan. Watterdal's time of 47:11 gave him 6th place overall finish.
After Watterdal, the other Nanooks crossed the line in a flurry as the next five UAF skiers crossed the line one-after-another. Ray Sabo (49:23), John Parry (49:25), and Einar Often (49:27), placed 19-21. Next was Erik Soderstrom in 22nd at 49:50, followed by Alex Morris in 23rd at 50:05.
Alaska returns home to prepare for the NCAA Central Region Championships, and their fifth and final NCAA qualifier which will be raced in Houghton, MI on Feb. 28, and March 1.
