Big Green Skiers Shine at U.S. Cross Country Nationals

Saturday, January 7

Midway, Utah

All Day

Dartmouth College

Nordic US National Championships

Big Green Skiers Shine at U.S. Cross Country Nationals

1/13/2017 3:09:00 PM | Skiing

By: Dartmouth

MIDWAY, Utah — Dartmouth cross country skiers turned in strong race performances at the recently held U.S. Cross Country Skiing Nationals this past week at Soldier Hollow, the 2002 Olympic Winter Games venue in Utah.

Among the Dartmouth skiers to post strong performances were juniors Callan DeLine and Luke Brown, and freshmen Lauren Jortberg and Abby Drach.

The Big Green squad took top honors in the USSA College Cup, held at the U.S. Nationals annually, by grabbing the top point totals from the men and women combined. It was a superb way to start the season with a convincing win over 21 teams, besting powerhouses from Northern Michigan, Denver, Colorado and Utah. The Nationals also served as a Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Carnival.

“This is simply a great way to start the racing season off, as it sets the tone for the winter,” commented Dartmouth Director of Skiing and long-time women's head cross country ski coach, Cami Thompson Graves. “The Western schools are race-ready, and for us to win the title is a positive step, as the next time we will meet them will be at the NCAA Skiing Championships in March. I'm really thrilled by the individual performances we had and by our teams' scoring power. The winter looks bright for us.”

In addition, a pair of Big Green skiers were also selected to represent the United States at the FIS World Junior/U23 Nordic Championships, which will kick-off at Soldier Hollow starting Jan. 30. Selected to the team were DeLine from Vail, Colorado, in the U-23 category, while Jortberg of Boulder, Colorado, was named to the U.S. Junior team. Drach was chosen as the alternate for that team.

The Big Green skiers open up the EISA Carnival season on Jan. 20 at the St. Lawrence University Carnival in Lake Placid, New York.