By Bruce Karnick
The Raiders Alpine Ski team competed their final race of the regular season at Buck Hill in Burnsville on Monday February 22nd. Head Coach Jason Gergen recapped the meet in an email. Since coaches do not always get to share their pride in their athletes to the general public, it’s always nice to hear it in their own words.
“The girls were edged out by Visitation despite great skiing by Taylor Pelava, Jolie Pettit, Lydia Huntington, Claire Caturia, Kira Lindstrom, Ella Kelly, Mia Molitor, and Addison Niebur. The boys were able to come out on top over St Thomas. Top skiers were Jackson Reents, Aaron Herber, Caleb Kimmes, Jacob Schield, and Joe Peine. Wednesday 3/3 both teams will compete for the section 4 championship at Wild Mountain. They also hope to earn a spot in the state meet. It will be a challenge as both teams will have to win to advance. The top individuals will also be eligible for the state meet in Biwabik,” Gergen’s email said.
Sections were Wednesday March third, and Hastings raced in the morning with the first runs starting at 9:00 a.m. and second at 10:30. The meet was held at Wild Mountain. The winning team and select individuals were sent to the state meet.
The top finisher on the girl’s team was Taylor Pelava in ninth place. She narrowly missed a spot in the state meet but will be back next season determined to go faster. Lydia Huntington was the second fastest Hastings girl finishing in 28th in her final high school race. The senior will be off to the University of Wisconsin Superior in the fall. The other Hastings girls were Abbigail Pelava, Jolie Pettit, Kira Lindstrom, and Claire Caturia. They will all be returning for next season and hope to compete for a spot at state.
The boys team finished in second, also just missing a return trip to state. Two of the boys, Aaron Herber and Cole Caturia finished first and second respectively and they each earned a spot to compete individually at the state meet next Wednesday in Biwabik. This will be the third trip to state for Aaron who is a sophomore, and first for Cole who is in ninth grade. The other boys section skiers were Caleb Kimmes, Zach Rother, Jacob Schield, and Gavin Molitor. All of the boys will return next season and hope to be an even stronger force at sections.
Best of luck at state, boys!
