Vasa Raptors win 2024 Michigan High School Championships
Sun, Feb 25, 2024 - By Mike Muha
[Sorry to the late posting - work and travel interfered with getting the results out o NordicSkiRacer!]
First the high school results - scroll down for the middle school results!
High School Championship results
The Traverse City Vasa Raptors High School team won the overall Michigan High School Team State Championship title. The Vasa Raptors girls took first place in the girls division with 26 points (low points indicate higher position); the boys were second overall with 51 points. Superiorland Ski Club took second overall, with the boys in third place (27 points) and the girls second overall with 86 points. Coming in third was the Copper Country Ski Tigers, winning the boys competition with 49 points and taking third in the girls competition with 132 points.
All photos courtesy of Superiorland Ski Club
The Vasa Raptors had some standout performances. Liam Wierzba took double titles, winning for the Freestyle and the Pursuit, and finishing second in the Classic.
The girls Freestyle title went to Vasa's Annie Paulson, and the girls pursuit title to Ella DeBruyn, who also won the Classic.
Olin Slette won the boys Classic race for Superiorland and took second in the Freestyle. Superiorland's Monet Argeropoulos Took third in the Pursuit.
Copper Country's Birk Seagren took third in the boys Classic, Freestyle, and Pursuit.
Mylie Kellly of Crystal Nordic took third in the Freestyle.
There was also a mixed relay that did not count for team points. The Vasa Raptors took the win with a team composed of Harrison Jeffries, Brandon White, Jack Mazurek, and Ella Debruyn. A mixed team took second place, and was composed of Ayla Miller and Illya Velat (Copper Country), and Isabelle Prusi and Riley Lovern (Ispeming Ski Club). Third was a team of three Vasa Raptors (Britton Wheeler, Owen Munch, and Emma Dykstra) plus Jack Lindwall from the Petoskey Ski Team.
2024 Michigan High School Nordic Ski Championships - Team Scoring
February 9-10, 2024, Ishpeming MI
Overall Team Score |
|||
| Rank & Team | Boys | Girls | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Vasa | 51 | 26 | 77 |
| 2 Superiorland | 56 | 86 | 142 |
| 3 Copper Country | 49 | 132 | 181 |
| 4 Ishpeming | 238 | 134 | 372 |
| 5 Crystal Mountain | 315 | 101 | 416 |
| 6 Penninsula Nordic | 206 | 220 | 426 |
| 7 Petoskey | 169 | 381 | 550 |
Boys Team Score |
||||
| Rank & Team | Boys Sprint | Boys Classic | Boys Freestyle | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Copper Country | 12 | 20 | 17 | 49 |
| 2 Vasa | 15 | 18 | 18 | 51 |
| 3 Superiorland | 27 | 13 | 16 | 56 |
| 4 Petoskey | 58 | 57 | 54 | 169 |
| 5 Penninsula Nordic | 76 | 77 | 53 | 206 |
| 6 Ishpeming | 72 | 81 | 85 | 238 |
| 7 Crystal Mountain | 109 | 87 | 119 | 315 |
Girls Team Score |
||||
| Rank & Team | Girls Sprint | Girls Classic | Girls Freestyle | Total |
| 1 Vasa | 11 | 6 | 9 | 26 |
| 2 Superiorland | 37 | 20 | 29 | 86 |
| 3 Crystal Mountain | 23 | 39 | 39 | 101 |
| 4 Copper Country | 34 | 48 | 50 | 132 |
| 5 Ishpeming | 35 | 38 | 61 | 134 |
| 6 Penninsula Nordic | 59 | 103 | 58 | 220 |
| 7 Petoskey | 129 | 123 | 129 | 381 |
Detailed high school individual results:
- Pursuit - Boys (include classic and freestyle results)
- Pursuit - Girls (include classic and freestyle results)
- Classic - Boys
- Classic - Girls
- Freestyle Sprint - Boys
- Freestyle Sprint - Girls
- Mixed Relay
Middle School Championship results
There were also a Middle School races.
The Superiorland girls - Silvia Palomaki, Stella Palomaki, and Evelyn Grant took first, second, and third in the Individual Start Classic, sweeping the podium. For the boys, Superiorland's Fischer Palomaki took first, with the Vasa Raptor's Bode Dykstra in second, and Superiorland's Austen Slette in third.
Superiorland's Silvia Palomaki won the girls freestyle sprint. Petoskey's Myla Pietila was second, followed by Crystal Nordic's Avery Kelly in third. For the boys, It was again Superiorland in first place with another win by Fischer Palomaki. Vasa Raptor's Bode Dykstra took second, and Superiorland's Will Lindsey in third.
- Classic - Middle School Boys
- Classic - Middle School Girls
- Freestyle Sprint - Middle School Boys
- Freestyle Sprint - Middle School Girls
The competition took place on Friday and Saturday, February 9 and 10, 2024.
Congratulations to all the athletes that showed up, raced, and had a good attitude through it all, despite less than ideal course conditions at the Michigan Nordic State Championship. They represented 7 teams across the Upper and Lower Peninsula at Al Quaal Recreation Area and the UP Nordic Ski Complex on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Racing was only possible thanks to a group of dedicated volunteers that spent hours shoveling snow onto the course and an amazing groomer, Caleb, that turned those efforts into a world class race course.
