Friendly competitors finish 1-2 in first day of Alaska state cross country skiing championships

Last year neither Dimond’s Emily Erickson nor Marley Ireland of Bettye Davis East had the endings to their junior seasons that they’d hoped for.

Both entered the year with hopes of contending for state titles but fell short due to health-related hurdles.

Erickson still managed to come in seventh place in the 7.5K classic race at the 2022 state championships despite dealing with an injury. Ireland wasn’t able to crack the top 10 in either the classic race or the 5K freestyle due to an illness.

The two skiers’ senior seasons turned out to be quite the opposite. The pair finished 1-2 at the Region IV meet earlier this month and in Thursday’s girls 5K interval start classic at the 2023 state championships. Erickson came in first in the classic at regions and accomplished the same feat at state with finish of 18:53.0.

“I was really nervous beforehand because I feel like I had to do as well as I did last week,” Erickson said. “It was tough competition out there, and it was cool to do well today and see all my friends do really well.”

She and Ireland are in the same club team and train together during the summer.

“Even though we go to different high schools, we’re still friends in that sense,” Erickson said. “Last year she was sick and couldn’t compete at the level she wanted to and I was injured.”

Ireland followed up her impressive showing at regions, where she earned Skimiester honors by finishing second in Girls 5K classic with a time of 19:08.2

“I was happy with today, and I’m really happy Emily won,” Ireland said. “She really deserves that.”

This is by far her best individual season to date and she feels “pretty good” about how it’s ending.

“Freshman year I wasn’t too good and then sophomore year I got a bit more serious and I really found more passion for skiing,” Ireland said.

She was hoping that last year would be her breakout season but ended up being sick for most of the season and wasn’t able to be at her best.

“To be able to come back and race quicker this year, I’m really grateful for the opportunity to do that,” Ireland said.

This marked her highest finish in the classic at state of her high school career. She finished seventh as a sophomore in 2021.

“Last year I was hoping to improve and I did not, so it’s nice to be able to come back from that and I really appreciate all the support I’ve gotten from coaches, friends and family,” Ireland said.

She had to get surgery in the middle of the season because of sinus issues she was experiencing.

Erickson said that Ireland was a huge source of inspiration and motivation for her and vowed that senior year would be their year.

“It’s really cool that it happened for both of us,” Erickson said. “To come in one and two today was really awesome.”

In addition to being happy for her friend, Ireland is also proud of how far the Thunderbirds’ program has come during her time at East. The school didn’t field a complete team at state in her freshman year and is coming off a second-place finish at regions.

In the boys 7.5K classic race, a similar storyline unfolded as Service teammates Aaron Power and Justin Lucas finished first and second.

Powers finished first with a time of 22:19.1 to claim his second straight individual title in the event.

“It was a really tough course and some pretty unique conditions, but I raced so much better than I ever could’ve hoped,” Power said. “I’m really proud of myself today.”

He was also thrilled for his friend and teammate Lucas, who came in second with a time of 23:18.1.

Even though he finished second to his teammate, the junior felt pretty good about his highest finish at state to date.

“I’ve been working for this for a long time,” Lucas said. “At Service, we have great coaches, and having good results is a good way to repay them for all the work they do for us.”

With this being Power’s last year, Lucas is already looking forward to next year where he can hopefully take over the mantle of the top male skier for the Cougars and around the state.

“Aaron worked his butt off this year, and I like seeing him finish first, so I’m looking forward to replacing him next year and keep the Service legacy going,” he said.

Both skiers have the same goal in mind heading into the final two days of competition — keeping the program’s title streak alive. The Cougars have claimed the last three state team championships in addition to having several individual champions over that time.

“It’d be great to win four years in a row,” Lucas said. “We’ve won the last three, why not make it four?”

Power said claiming his second straight individual title in his favorite style of race was a “really nice way to wrap up” his high school career and that he is both satisfied and grateful for all the success he’s had over the years.

“Tomorrow I’m just hoping to just ski with the pack, keep it nice and clean and smooth the whole race and hopefully hold on to that lead that I put on today,” he added.

Gunning for Service this year is West High. The Eagles showed impressive depth that helped them sweep both the boys and girls titles at regions a couple weeks ago.

“They came in as region champs with a target on their backs and Service is strong so this is going to be a showdown,” West coach Joey Caterinichio said. “It was definitely great to win together as a team, both boys and girls.”

The Eagles were right on the heels of the Cougars in the boys race on the first day, finishing narrowly behind them in terms of elapsed time of 1:34:37.7 to 1:34:39.2. In the girls race, West established a bit of a larger lead with a time of 1:20:28.7 to Service’s 1:23:17.7.

Depth has been key to the Eagles overall team success this season even when they haven’t had a litany of top or even top 5 finishers.

The West boys had the fourth, fifth, sixth and eighth finishers in Blake Hanley, Murphy Kimball, Cole Flowers and Hatcher Menkens. The West girls also had four skiers in the top 10 with Samatha Legate (6th), Berit Meyers (7th), Piper Sears (8th) and Zoe Rodgers (10th).

“Depth is definitely on our side for sure,” Caterinichio said. “Service delivers year after year, and West’s goal is to try to upset them.”

Alaska State Cross Country Championships

Girls

Team totals (Day 1)

1. West 1:20:28.7; 2. Service 1:23:17.7; 3. Dimond 1:23:59.7; 4. East 1:23:59.9; 5. South 1:24:57.8

Individuals 5K classic race (Top 10)

1. Emily Erickson, Dimond, 18:53.0; 2. Marley Ireland, East, 19:08.2; 3. Meredith Schwartz, Service, 19:23.4; 4. Olivia Soderstrom, Service, 19:27.7; 5. Amaeli Kam-Magruder, Dimond, 19:45.8; 6. Samatha Legate, West, 19:58.3; 7. Berit Meyers, West, 20:02.0; 8. Piper Sears, West, 20:06.5; 9. Rose Conway, East, 20:11.5; 10. Zoe Rodgers, West,20:21.9.

Boys

Team totals (Day 1)

1. Service 1:34:37.7; 2. West 1:34:39.2; 3. West Valley 1:40:58.2; 4. South 1:41:28.6; 5. Colony 1:42:34.7

Individuals 7.5K classic race (Top 10)

1. Aaron Power, Service, 22:19.1; 2. Justin Lucas, Service, 23:18.1; 3. Wells Wappett, Lathrop, 23:18.7; 4. Blake Hanley, West, 23:26.3; 5. Murphy Kimball, West, 23:27.5; 6. Cole Flowers, West, 23:40.0; 7. Ethan Howe, East, 24:00.5; 8. Hatcher Menkens, West, 24:05.4; 9. Kieran Kaufman, West Valley, 24:09.9; 10. Vebjorn Flagstad, South, 24:11.2.