Nordic skiing roundup: Junior Nationals and the first day of Eastern High School Championships

LAKE PLACID, N.Y. — Edward Little sophomore Orrin Slover earned his fourth top-30 finish at the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Cross Country Junior National Championships on Friday.

Slover, who races for Quarry Road Ski Club, placed 27th in the U16 men’s mass start race, covering the 5-kilometers in 13 minutes, 38.5 seconds. Slover finished eighth in Wednesday’s classic sprint and 24th in Monday’s individual start freestyle.

Abrahm Geissinger, who raced for the Spruce Mountain Nordic ski team before moving to Green Mountain Valley School in Vermont, took 35th in the 10-kilometer men’s U18 race with a time of 30:23.0. Former Edward Little student Ellis Slover of Gould Academy finished 60th (32:00.6).

Another Gould skier, Nyla Scott of Greenwood, took 45th in the women’s U18 race (37:58.2).

Quarry Road’s Caden Cote placed 37th in the men’s U20 race (22:55.0).

Along with the individual results, the regional teams are vying for the Alaska Cup. The New England team takes a 305-point lead over second-place Intermountain into the final day of competition, which consists of freestyle relay races.

HIGH SCHOOL NORDIC
MCCOURTS TAKE FIFTH: Mt. Blue twins Henri and Nora McCourt had twin finishes on the first day of the New England Nordic Ski Association’s Eastern High School Championships on Friday hosted by Holderness School in Plymouth, New Hampshire.

Henri McCourt, a junior who swept the Class A championships last month, placed fifth in the boys 5-kilometer freestyle race, finishing in 14 minutes, 39.7 seconds.

Nora McCourt took fifth in the girls race with a time of 16:38. Like her brother, the junior swept the Class A state girls titles.

New Hampshire’s Oliver Wilson (14:02.1) was the boys winner. Three other Maine skiers joined Henri McCourt in the top 20: Quarry Road Ski Club’s Beckett Cote (14:44.2) placed sixth, Class C champion Alden Reardon (15:17.3) of Fort Kent was 15th and Gould’s Parker Nellis (15:21.9) was 17th.

McCourt’s Mt. Blue teammates, Elias Bartlett and Damian Wynn, finished 56th and 63rd, respectively, and Leavitt’s Gabe Durazo came in 94th.

Bethel’s Gould Academy had four other boys finishers: James Crowley (28th), Lucas Barstow (44th), Ian Brown (71st) and Will Brown (75th).

The Maine girls also had four top-20 finishers. Joining Nora McCourt were Gould’s Hannah Grohman (eighth, 17:42.7), and Orono sisters Ruth (16th, 18:11.4) and Clara (19th, 18:24.9) White.

New Hampshire earned the top four finishes ahead of Nora McCourt in the girls race, paced by winner Ella Ronci (16:03.5).

Three other Mt. Blue Nordic skiers competed in the girls race. Lucinda Carroll took 44th, Maya Kellett 54th and Natalie McCarthy 61st.

Edward Little’s Nora Condit placed 59th and teammate Kat Garcia came in 72nd. Leavitt’s Abby Marston took 77th, eight spots ahead of fellow Hornet Jade Haylock (85th). For Gould Academy, Brynn Newsome was 86th and Evelyn Burnes took 88th.

The Eastern Nordic championships continue Saturday with the 7.5K classic mass start races.