FORT KENT, Maine — During an unusual weekday alpine ski meet on the Martin Luther King holiday, Monday. Jan. 16, local skiers turned in some strong performances.
On the boys’ side, only four schools brought enough skiers to compete for team scoring. Fort Kent’s Community High School had the most competitors and took the top spot, ahead of second-place Presque Isle High School.
Wisdom High School’s Jake Roy posted the fastest time of the day, skiing to a combined 1:17.72 in the afternoon’s runs, but Presque Isle senior Nick Bartlett was fifth in 1:20.37 and Central Aroostook’s Lane Grass (1:22.27) and Bryant Grass (1:26.11) were ninth and 10th, respectively. Scott Bray of the Caribou Vikings was 12th in 1:27.66.
In the morning runs, Bryant Grass was the only local boy in the top 10 as he was eighth in 1:28.79. Bray came in 11th place in 1:31.5.
Wildcat sophomores Kyler Caron and Zechariah Morse made the top 15 during both the morning and afternoon heats.
Warrior skiers took all the top spots on the girls’ side Monday, but Caribou’s Hope Shea and Maren Moir placed sixth and seventh, respectively, in the afternoon. Eleanor St. Peter and Sheridan Boucher, both of Presque Isle, also placed in the top 10, while teammate Natalie Bates was 13th.
In the girls’ morning heats, Fort Kent again dominated by grabbing the top five positions, but Shea of the Vikings earned sixth place with a combined time of 1:39.80. Presque Isle’s Boucher finished in 10th place on the afternoon, with Bates taking 11th.
Teams also gathered at Bigrock Saturday, although the cold temperatures forced a later than planned start time.
In the boys’ slalom, Bartlett won with a combined time of 1:12.56 for his two runs. Lane Grass was fourth in 1:16.11 and Bryant Grass 10th in 1:19.61. Scott Bray was Caribou’s top skier, placing 12th in 1:24.58
For the girls, Fort Kent again dominated by taking the top five positions, but Shea was sixth in 1:31.37 and St. Peter ninth in 1:42.88. Boucher and Moir just missed out on making the top 10.
The second race featured just one run, with Alisha Guimond of Fort Kent (38.7 seconds) first for girls and Bartlett coming through with another first-place finish in 36.25 seconds)
The Warriors once against swept the team titles at the Mars Hill venue.
On the girls’ side, Viking teammates Shea and Moir were sixth and seventh, respectively, while PI’s St. Peter and Boucher were eighth and 10th. For boys, Bryant Grass was 10th with teammate Jon Gebhart close behind in 11th. Bray placed 15th in the standings.
The next alpine races are planned for Saturday, Jan. 21, back at Bigrock beginning at 9 a.m.
Sports Reporter Kevin Sjoberg contributed to this article.
