Jamie Mountain
The Muskie Nordic ski team continues to make its mark this season.
Three of the nine-member contingent walked away with hardware at the NorWOSSA championships last Wednesday in Atikokan.
Tori Toriseva was the top Muskie in claiming gold in the senior girls’ 4.5-km race, clocking in with a time of 18:57.
In the junior girls’ 3.7-km division, Emma Toriseva snagged silver (14:35) while Kayli Machura took bronze (15:12).
Shayna Hensrud of the Kenora Broncos nabbed gold in that division (13:13).
As a team, the Muskies all qualified to advance to yesterday’s NWOSSAA championships in Dryden, with the results not known as of press time.
Muskie coach Matt Chalmers, who coaches the squad alongside Jordan Baird and teacher rep John Gibson, did not attend last Wednesday’s races but said that after speaking with the team on Thursday, they were very pleased with their results.
“The girls skied very good, and were happy with their race and that they are showing big improvement throughout this year,” he remarked.
“Tori had a great race in the senior girls, winning in a time of 18:57,” Chalmers noted.
“Emma and Kayli also had great races, and were happy that they were able to close the gap on Shayna Hensrud from the race earlier this year in Kenora.
“The girls are looking forward to the race [this] week in Dryden,” he added.
Ray Calder had the best showing for the Muskies in the junior boys’ 4.5-km race, placing eighth with a time of 21:17.
He was followed by William Richards (21:19) and Tanner Williamson (24:00).
Liam Jones of the Dryden Eagles snared gold (15:40) while Quinn Brait of the Red Lake Rams earned silver (15:42) and Soleil Vos of the host Voyageurs took home bronze (16:06).
In the senior boys’ 7.6-km race, Joseph Dueck was tops among the Muskies in finishing seventh (29:40).
He was followed by Steven Dueck in ninth (35:40) and Corbin Grynol in 12th (31:07).
Grynol only skied one lap of the race (4.5 km).
Declan How of the Broncos nabbed gold (25:54), with Kelyn Vos of the Voyageurs taking silver (26:58) and Kyle Gelderland of the Rams snagging bronze (27:24).
Chalmers said the day was a “success for the team.”
“There are a lot of close results from yesterday [Wednesday] that we are watching and the athletes are using to fuel their final few workouts heading into [this] week’s races,” he remarked.
“Especially on the boys’ side, where the results of [last] week’s . . . races were separated by a few seconds.
“This will make [this] week’s qualifying race interesting and exciting,” he predicted, adding that “the team has really come together as a group.”
In terms of preparation for yesterday’s NWOSSAA championships, Chalmers said his athletes planned to practice last Thursday night and then had one more tune-up practice slated for Saturday at the Rainy Lake Nordic Ski Club trails.
“The biggest thing at this point is just keeping everyone healthy and avoiding injuries,” he stressed.
“As a team, we had identified a few things after our first race that we have wanted to work on as a group and have been making improvements in those areas,” Chalmers added.
“Some of the big keys to doing well is going to be for our athletes to stay relaxed and not over-ski the race,” he stressed.
“This happens when they panic and don’t allow the skis to glide and do the work.”
The OFSAA championships are slated for Feb. 28-March 1 in Duntroon.
