Nordic team fares well at Meissner

Courtney Blust came through as the top individual performer for the Sisters High School Nordic team in an Oregon High School Nordic league skate race held Saturday, January 9, at Virginia Meissner Sno-Park.

Blust finished fourth in a field of 65 girls, skating over the 5.8-kilometer course in 21:29 to lead the Outlaws. Janelle Hjelmstad scored next for Sisters in 26th place (25:25) and Amity Calvin, off her normal pace, finished in 30th (25:51).

The remaining girls finishing for Sisters included Riley Barrett (31:00), Jenna Rheuben (32:27), Emi Conrads (32:57), and Jessica Wester (42:00).

Coach Tom Blust felt the girls gave a good effort in the meet, noting that the new skiers, Barrett, Conrads and Wester will continue to improve dramatically as their technique gets better.

Overall, the boys fared slightly better in team points. Parker Bennett paced the Outlaws with a seventh-place finish (18:04) behind a sweep of the first six places by Summit skiers.

"Parker is really starting to click with his skating technique, and it showed today," said Blust.

The second scorer for the Outlaws, Alex Yinger, finished 18th (20:04), followed by Mason Calmettes in 29th (21:28).

"Mason has really jumped up in the mix of the top boys in the league," said Blust. "He's a very determined young man."

Jake Lasken (22:29), Andy Thomas (22:50) and Erik Lund (27:50) rounded out the remaining Sisters skiers.

The Nordic racers will take part in a pursuit race at Mt. Bachelor on Saturday, January 23. In Mt. Bachelor Pursuit, the skiers will start with a four-kilometer class race, followed by a four-kilometer skate race, which tests the overall technique and endurance of the skiers.

The Oregon High School Nordic (OHSNO) league is comprised of Sisters, Bend, Crook County, Corvallis, Crescent Valley, Redmond and Summit.