Kenai captures state ski hardware

The Kenai Central ski teams took home a bunch of hardware from the state ski meet at Birch Hill in Fairbanks on Saturday.

Both the Kardinals girls and boys won awards for having the top Division II team time at the three-day meet, while the girls also got the academic award and sportsmanship award.

Kenai junior Jayna Boonstra won the award as the top Division II skier in Thursday’s 5K freestyle and Friday’s 7.5K classic races. Kenai sophomore Emily Moss was the third Division II skier Thursday and second Thursday, while Homer’s Ireland Styvar was the second Division II skier Thursday.

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Kenai sophomore Jack Laker was the top Division II skier in Thursday’s 7.5K freestyle and Friday’s 10K classic, while Kenai’s Tyler Hippchen was the second DII skier both days. Homer’s Jody Goodrich was the third Division II skier Thursday, while Kenai’s Greg Fallon was third in Division II on Friday.

Kenai Central head coach Brad Nyquist praised his coaches and skiers for coming through despite some surprises.

Nyquist said he was not able to make the trip to Fairbanks due to a positive COVID test. He said assistants Mike Bergholtz, Christine Bergholtz, Mitch Michaud and Kristin Davis all came through.

“They extended what they do all season and continued to support the kids and make good things happen,” Nyquist said. “It was tough not to be there, but it’s all about the kids and their performance.

“They prepared for this all season and they came through in a big way.”

Kenai was scheduled to bus to Anchorage and then fly to Fairbanks, but even that changed at the last minute due to an accident closing the Sterling Highway. Kenai flew to Anchorage instead.

Nyquist said Laker, Hippchen and Fallon made each other better all season.

“Each have their strengths, and learning from each other makes them strong all around,” Nyquist said. “It’s been exciting watching them trade out.”

The coach said there is a similar dynamic with Boonstra and Moss. Nyquist, who was able to watch a stream of the meet, said Boonstra had great races that showcased her tempo, fitness and racing savvy.

“Emily, the fact that she’s pushing right behind her, makes the whole team strong,” Nyquist said.

Soldotna coach Isaac Erhardt also was happy with the way his team performed at the meet, adding that standout performances came from Jordan Ruffner, Quinn Cox, Jordan Strausbaugh and Ariana Cannava.

The coach added Strausbaugh, Ruffner and Quinn Cox were the only ones to ski at state before.

“We had a lot of kids learn what this racing at this level is all about,” Erhardt said. “There’s a lot of tired kids. They look like zombies. They did good.”

With above-freezing temperatures hitting Southcentral, Erhardt said it was nice to escape to the Interior. He said the snow and trails were great, with the only unfortunate incident coming when a crash in the boys race tangled up a lot of the field at the beginning of Friday’s mass start.

“The neat thing about racing at state is through the season we’re competing against borough teams, but at state we’re working together as allies,” Erhardt said.

Friday in the girls 7.5K mass start classical race, Boonstra led the peninsula by finishing 15th in 27:17. The race victory went to Service senior Marit Flora in 24:07. Moss was 16th overall at 27:21.

Also for the Kardinals, Leah Fallon was 43rd at 30:49, Summer Foster was 45th at 31:16, Gabriella Tews was 55th at 32:19 and Madison McDonald was 58th at 32:43.

For Soldotna, Ruffner led the way by taking 31st in 29:21, while Cannava was 40th in 30:25, Strausbaugh was 41st in 30:39, Adele Tacey was 76th in 36:23 and Emmy Reese was 81st in 37:10.

Ireland Styvar led Homer by taking 35th in 30:06, while Eryn Field was 53rd in 32:08, Sienna Hardyman was 75th in 36:15, Elena Badajos was 83rd in 37:25 and Leah Dunn was 88th in 42:14.

Aly Guernsey was 80th for Seward in 36:43.

In the boys 10K mass start classic race Friday, Laker finished 22nd at 32:32. Service’s Aaron Power won at 28:52.

Soldotna’s Quinn Cox was 31st overall in 33:17, while Hippchen was 36th overall at 33:52. Fallon was 40th at 34:10.

Also for Kenai, Zane Tews was 62nd in 37:37, Ben Boersma was 71st in 38:27 and George Wright was 91st in 42:17.

Also for the Stars, Andrew Cox was 64th in 37:48, Levi Mickelson was 70th in 38:13, Bennjamin Able was 74th in 39:01, Trenton Boots was 80th in 39:35 and Jonathan Gordon was 81st in 40:06.

Seamus McDonough led Homer by taking 56th in 36:43, while Jody Goodrich was 67th in 38:07, Garrett Briscoe was 75th in 39:01 and Leif Jaworski was 101st in 48:23.

Trevor Guernsey was 79th for Seward in 39:18.

In Saturday’s 4-by-3-kilometer relay, with classic the first two legs and freestyle the last two legs, the Kenai girls squad of Boonstra, Moss, Foster and Fallon led Division II and the peninsula by taking sixth in 42:45, with Service winning at 38:06.

The Soldotna girls, made up of Cannava, Ruffner, Ciufo and Strausbaugh, nabbed 11th in 44:50, while Homer’s Field, Badajos, Hardyman and Styvar were 14th in 48:14.

The boys did a 4-by-5K relay. The Kenai boys team of Fallon, Boersma, Laker and Hippchen led the area and Division II by taking eighth in 1:03:55. Service won at 57:04.

The Homer boys team of McDonough, Briscoe, Jaworski and Goodrich took 11th in 1:08:31, while the Soldotna boys team of Quinn Cox, Andrew Cox, Mickelson and Gordon was 12th in 1:09:05.

Kenai Central’s Ben Boersma, Tyler Hippchen, Jack Laker, George Wright, Zane Tews and Greg Fallon celebrate the team’s Division II championships at the state ski meet Saturday, Feb. 26, 2022, in Fairbanks, Alaska. (Photo provided)