Skiing Competes in 95th Annual Middlebury Carnival

This weekend, the Harvard skiing team competed in its final team competition in Middlebury, Vt. The Crimson Nordic and Alpine teams traveled north to compete in the 95th Annual Middlebury Carnival, the final race of the Eastern Intercollegiate Ski Association carnival season. Over the duration of Friday and Saturday, Harvard compiled a score of 241 points, coming in 11th place.

Next weekend, after accumulating 92 individual qualifier points throughout the season, junior Nina Armstrong will compete at the 2018 NCAA Championship.

On Friday, Harvard earned 104 points in the nordic classic races. Junior Hannah Hardenbergh turned in the highest finishes, taking 15th in the 5K with a time of 14:42.9. Sophomore Tegan Thorley was next for the women, crossing the finish line in 15:12.9 and placing 29th. Armstrong was three seconds behind her and took home 31st. In her final collegiate 5K, senior Charlotte Cole placed 41st, completing the course in 15:33.1.

On the men’s side, sophomore William Rhatigan was the first finisher, completing the 10k classic race course in 26:03.4 for 34th place. In his last collegiate carnival 10K race, Senior Connor Green skied to a personal best of 27:38.4, placing 47th. Rounding out the men, sophomore Mackinley FitzPatrick, freshman Christopher O'Brien, and senior Haakon Sigurslid skied in a pack, finishing in 52nd, 53rd and 54th, respectively. Like Green, Sigurslid also set a course personal record in his final 10K classic race at Middlebury with a time of 28:49.7.

In day one of the Alpine races, freshman Nellie Ide and senior Kelly Steeves continued to lead the way for the women. Ide was Harvard’s top finisher, placing 37th against one of the most competitive fields in the country. Steeves rattled off two strong runs as well, as she placed 45th in her last Giant Slalom carnival race of her career.

Robert Dorfman was the only scorer for the men, placing 58th, though a teammate nearly joined him.

“Carter Kendig was 31st after GS first run, an incredible feat with course conditions that were terrible,” coach Scott MacPherson said. “He was going for it second run, but missed a gate and didn’t finish.”

On Saturday, Hardenbergh and Rhatigan led the nordic team again with impressive finishes. For the men, Rhatigan placed 36th with a time of 50:49.4 in the 20K freestyle. For the second time in one weekend, FitzPatrick placed 52nd. This time it was Green who crossed the finish line right after, taking 53rd.

The women all skied close together, with Hardenbergh leading the pack in 28th with a time of 43:19.4, and Armstrong, Thorley and Cole, coming in 31st, 35th, and 40th, respectively. In her final collegiate race, Cole’s time of 45:06.6 was an event personal record.

In Saturday’s Slalom race, seven Harvard skiers qualified for second runs. Finishing up strong collegiate skiing careers, seniors Steeves and Pieter Weemaes led the way for the women and men, respectively. In their final races for Harvard, Steeves placed 50th and Weemaes 47th. Junior Dennis Bao scored for the first time in a Middlebury Carnival, placing 54th. Sophomores Dorfman, Hornberg and Kendig placed 56th, 57th and 58th respectively.

“We spotlighted our tremendous seniors all weekend,” MacPherson said. “Kelly and Pieter are truly great ambassadors for our sport, our team, and Harvard.”

—Staff writer Rena Simkowitz can be reached at rena.simkowitz@thecrimson.com.