Team Gogebic Sends Athletes To Michigan State Championships

HOUGHTON, MI - Sunday, February 22, 2009 - It’s been over 35 years since the Gogebic Range towns competed regionally in the sport of cross-country skiing. That furlough came to an end Valentine’s weekend when Team Gogebic participated in the Michigan High School Cross Country Ski State Championships. For the first time ever, the team was coed.

Ben Noren, 17, Sam Kolesar, 16, both of Bessemer, and Britta Schroeder, 14, of Ironwood, made up the team, with Ken Hazel of Ironwood the coach. Parents Laura Noren and Paul Kolesar accompanied the team for the weekend trip to Houghton, MI.

The competition took place at the Michigan Tech Nordic Ski Trails. A pursuit race was held Saturday, with a classic ski race in the morning, and a freestyle race in the afternoon. Noren finished 6th, Kolesar 16th and Schroeder 12th. The top 16 all took home awards.

On Sunday, the sprint races took place. All three Team Gogebic athletes made it through the qualifying round. Competitors and coaches alike were astounded to discover newcomer Ben Noren posted the fastest qualifying time of the day! Kolesar and Schroeder were eliminated in the quarterfinals, finishing 9th and 15th respectively. After finishing 3rd in a photo-finish decision in the semifinals, Noren advanced to the “B” finals, which he won, bringing home a 5th place award.

As a team, the two boys tied for 4th, while the girls team of one finished 7th. Team Gogebic placed 5th out of 11 teams in the overall (coed) rankings.