SKI | Voyageurs Just Miss Podium at OUA Championships
The Voyageurs Nordic Ski teams were in Thunder Bay over the weekend competing at the OUA Championships, with three days of tough competition.
The Championships opened with the Classic discipline on Friday with the men racing 10km and the women racing 5km, with an interval start. Matteo Reich was the top Voyageur in the men's race, crossing the line in 20th place with a time of 39:25.6. On the women's side, Laura Williams was the top skier in blue and gold across the line, clocking a time of 22:47.7.
Day two saw the skiers switch gears from individual racing to team relays with three skiers from each team skiing a 3km loop. The men's team of Thomas Gore, Reich and Colton Labine crossed the line in ninth place with a total combined time of 30:21.9. On the women's side it was the trio of Williams, Lydia Harris and Katherine Grove clocking a time of 37:51.8, good enough for eighth place.
The final day of the Championships saw the skiers compete in a mass start freestyle race with the men skiing 15km and the women skiing 10km. Reich was once again the top Voyageur on the men's side, coming across the line in 50:46.4 and finishing in 15th place. Harris paced the women as she edged out teammate Williams by a tenth of a second with a time of 39:53.2, giving the Voyageurs a 13th and 14th place finish.
At the end of the three days of racing, the men finished the Championship in 6th place with a total of 263 points while the women found themselves just off the podium, finishing in 4th with 183 points. Full results can be found here. The Championships officially bring a close to the varsity season for the team.