Big Green Nordic Skiers Shine Prior to Carnival Season

NORTH ELBA, NY - MARCH 09: during the Division I Men’s and Women’s Skiing Championships held at Mt Van Hoevenberg on March 9, 2023 in North Elba, New York. (Photo by Dustin Satloff/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)

Junior John Steel Hagenbuch

Photo by: NCAA Photos via Getty Images

Big Green Nordic Skiers Shine Prior to Carnival Season

1/9/2024 2:36:00 PM | Skiing

Dartmouth placed third in the Collegiate Cup Standings at the U.S. Cross Country Ski National Championships last week

By: Rick Bender

HANOVER, N.H. — With just a few days before the 2024 EISA carnival season begins, the Dartmouth Nordic team posted a number of strong performances at the U.S. Cross Country Ski National Championships held at Soldier Hollow over the first week of the new year.

Junior John Steel Hagenbuch had top-10 finishes in all three events in which he competed. First, he placed ninth in the 10K classic on Jan. 2. Two days later, he took eighth in the sprint freestyle races, then won the 20K free by nearly a full minute (46:35.8) the following day. Success is nothing new for two-time All-American Hagenbuch, who claimed second in both Nordic races at the NCAA Skiing Championships at Lake Placid last March.

Hagenbuch was not the only Big Green victor on Jan. 5 as sophomore Jack Lange took the top step of the podium in the U20 10K free, winning the race by a full 17 seconds with a time of 24:40.7. As a rookie last winter, Lange earned a spot on the All-America Second Team in the classic discipline.

Sophomore Ava Thurston, a two-time Second Team All-American in 2023, was the top Dartmouth performer in the women's events, claiming 10th in the 10K classic on the first day of events and ninth in the 20K free on Jan. 5. The other Big Green top-10 finish was turned in by first-year Evie Walton in the Junior 10K free, placing seventh.

At the conclusion of the championships, the top three colleges represented on both the men's and women's sides, as well as overall, were recognized with the College Cup Awards. The Dartmouth women finished second with 303 points, just 29 behind Utah, and the Big Green as a combined unit placed third in the standings with 567 points, trailing Utah (644) and Denver (584).

Junior Hannah Chipman won't be able to compete for Dartmouth this winter, but that is due to being the top-ranked junior woman at the United States Biathlon junior national trials this December in Mount Itasca, Minnesota. Her performance led to her selection by U.S. Biathlon for several European racing opportunities representing her country. Among these opportunities are the 2023-24 Junior IBU Cup and 2024 Junior Open European Championships in Jakuszyce, Poland, as well as the 2024 Youth and Junior World Championships in Otepää, Estonia.

This is the second consecutive year Chipman will compete for the U.S. at the Junior World Championships in biathlon.

The 2024 carnival season opens on Friday, Jan. 12 with the classic sprint races at the Craftsbury Nordic Center hosted by the University of Vermont, followed by the 10K free the next day.