The Gustavus nordic skiing teams are set to race in their second of three NCAA qualifiers this weekend in Bawabik, Minn. This will be the first competition since the 2007-08 Regional Championships that the teams will make their way to Biwabik.
The men’s team is coming off a fifth place finish and the women’s team a sixth place finish from the first NCAA qualifier in the Tour de Twin Cities in Minneapolis. For the women, Erica Hett (Sr., Burnsville Minn.) broke out with her best performance of the season. She placed 18th in the 5K Freestyle with a time of 13:33.3 and 13th in the 15K Classic with 50:10.2. Junior Marian Lund (Duluth, Minn.) followed closely behind Hett finishing 20th in both races.
On the men’s side, sophomore Josh Blankenship (Maple Grove, Minn.) led the team in both races, placing 26th in the 10K Freestyle with a time of 24:00.8 and 27th in the 15K Classic with 53:37.9. Tyler Gustafson (So., Grand Rapids, Minn.) and Scott Williams (So., Maple Grove, Minn.) were the team’s other top performers.