Bobcats Set to Defend National Championship
Mammoth Lakes, California ~ In the midst of record weather that has seen more than 100 inches of snowfall in the last week, the Paul Smith's College Nordic teams are preparing to compete in the 2023 USCSA National Championships at Tamarack Nordic Center In Mammoth Lakes, CA.
The men's team returns as the defending national champions, looking to win back-to-back national titles after their dominant performance at Mount Van Hoevenberg last year. The entirety of last year's team are returners, with Aidan Ripp (Cloquet, MN) leading the way as last year's individual overall national champion. Joining Ripp will be Gustav Whitcomb (Holderness, NH), Diego Schillaci (New Paltz, NY), Logan Jensen (Bemidji, MN), and John Thompson (Bakersfield, VT). Making their first appearance at the national championships for the Bobcats are Timothy Ziegler (Marquette, MI) and Philip Matthews (Half Moon, NY). One notable absence for the men is Nathan Livingood (Falmouth, ME), who is currently competing in the IBU World Youth Championships in Kazakhstan.
The women's team returns as well after a strong runner-up finish last year. This year the team returns with Jessie Church (Bethlehem, NY) and Kaisa Bosek (Alexandria, MN) leading the women, as both were on last year's runner-up team. They will be joined by newcomers Saylor Landrum (St. Paul, MN) and Emily Cieslewitz (Marcy, NY). One notable absence for the women is Dolcie Tanguay (Fort Kent, ME), who has spent the winter season competing in Europe as a member of the US Biathlon Jr. team. She is currently competing in the IBU World Jr. Championships in Kazakhstan along with Livingood.
Head Coach Matt Dougherty is excited and confident going in to the week. "Both teams have had great seasons and should expect great performances," said Dougherty. "This year's national championships provide some unique challenges - racing at extreme altitude in Mammoth Lakes (9,000 ft elevation) is a true challenge for an East Coast team. Despite the challenges for our team I expect a really fine performance and it should be one of the most exciting and close championship on both sides as a few teams will be really close in points. I think that gives us another great chance and all we can do is focus on the process and being our best versions of ourselves," he added.
The competition begins on Wednesday, March 8th with the Individual Skate Sprint at Mammoth Mountain before heading to Tamarack Nordic Center for the final three days of racing. For the full schedule, live results, and live video feeds, please visit www.uscsa.org. You can follow the nordic team on Instagram at @paulsmiths_nordic or follow the general athletics account at @smitty_nation for much more!