BOZEMAN, Mont. - The Nanooks completed the Montana State Invitational on Sunday morning with a 7.5k classic at the Crosscut Mountain Sports Center in Bozeman. The 'Nooks competed in a hard-fought battle at altitude after a stretch of travel, with the weather just above race-legal temperatures to start the morning, and they finished in sixth place overall with a total of 148 points on the weekend.
Alaska only had two women start and finish the race, as Kendall Kramer and Rosie Fordham competed in the 20k World Cup race. In the 7.5k classic today, Aila Berrigan took 28th with a 26:47.3, while Elsie Weiss competed in the race after missing Friday's 20k freestyle, picking up a 30th place finish and completing her race in 29:23.9. The women earned 29 points on the day, completing the invite with 44 points for a sixth-place finish.
Freshman Gabriele Rigaudo followed up his strong showing on Friday with a team-best 16th place finish, finishing his second RMISA race in 20:35.9, the highest finish for a Nanook skier on the day. Philipp Moosmayer followed with a top-20 placement, finishing the 7.5k in 20:49.0, just one second behind 19th place. Ben Dohlby followed close behind with a time of 20:56.6 to take 22nd place. Aidan Hay (21:04.6), Josh Baurick (21:52.8) and Blake Hanley (22:08.9) took 25th, 29th and 30th, respectively, rounding out the finishers on the men's side. The men finished with 51 points on the day to give them 104 on the weekend, putting them in fifth place.
After a long stretch of travel, the 'Nooks are looking forward to being back home, as they are set to host the UAF Invitational on Feb. 16-17 following the Denver Invite in two weeks.
Team Nordic Standings
Utah 380, Denver 338, Colorado 314, UAA 264, MSU 200, Alaska 148
Men's Nordic Standings
Utah 190, Denver 187, UAA 138, Colorado 137, Alaska 104, MSU 86
Women's Nordic Standings
Utah 190, Colorado 177, Denver 151, UAA 126, MSU 114, Alaska 44
Up Next
The Nanooks are back in action in two weeks with the Denver Invitational. They start the invite with a Classic Individual 7.5k on Saturday, Feb. 8, before taking part in the Freestyle Pursuit 10k on Sunday, Feb. 9.
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