With a majority of their season completed, the men’s and women’s nordic ski teams turn their focus to preparing for the remainder of the season with high goals in mind.
Looking back on the season, the nordic ski team has many things to be proud of: overcoming the lack of snow that hindered their practice sessions then going on to take the College Cup in senior nationals and also having eight team members being chosen to compete in the U23 and Junior National Championships hosted in Romania.
“There are a lot more of us going [to nationals] this year,” sophomore Vivian Hett said. “It shows that our team is improving well.”
But with the NCAA National Championships being just a month away, and eight skiers traveling to compete in Romania, the Wildcats turn away from the past and start to look forward, making sure everyone is healthy and well enough to compete in the NCAA, where they will face off against tough opponents such as the University of Alaska Fairbanks and College of Saint Scholastica.
“We have high goals for the NCAAs,” sophomore Ian Torchia said. “We are looking to show the eastern and western schools not to forget about the Midwest.”
Despite their successes, overconfidence does not seem to be an issue. The coaching staff has instilled upon the athletes that there is no room for swelled heads. Because of this the team is constantly challenging each other and growing together.
“First you form the attitude, then the attitude forms you” is the motto head coach Sten Fjeldheim tells the team to encourage them to uphold their composure on and off the course.
“I don’t think we get ahead of ourselves because we are too busy competing with each other,” Torchia said. “We serve each other pieces of humble pie all the time.”
Fjeldheim largely credits the team’s success to the athletes and believes the team’s bond plays a huge role in their success both future and past, but also places a lot of value in Assistant Coach Shane MacDowell and what he brings to the program.
“Shane has been an incredible positive addition to the group,” Fjeldheim said. “He’s going to be a great head coach someday.”
The whole nordic ski program, pumped up by their accomplishments this season, have very high hopes for their upcoming competitions and are eager to face off against their competition.
“It’s been a great year. It’s not over yet—we have challenges that lay ahead of us. The way the athletes have been training and supporting each other, I think we’ll be fine,” Fjeldheim said.
