Alpine Ski: Warriors dominate home meet

NISSWA — For the third meet in a row, the Brainerd Warriors swept.

This time it was the home meet Tuesday, Jan. 14, at Mount Ski Gull.

Brianerd’s Piper Grillo won the girls’ race with a 48.48. The Warrior girls recorded 124 points.

Sophia Blanck finished third in 51.02, while Cece Rasinski was fourth in 52.31.

“It was definitely a cold one,” Blanck said. “Getting down the hill quickly was vital for staying warm. The adrenaline kept you warm. We had a good dynamic going today. We were first, third and fourth.”

Blanck is a senior and in her second season racing for the Warriors. Last season, she transferred into the district from Cook County. She went to state for Cook County as a sophomore and then as a junior helped the Warriors reach state.

“The Brainerd team has been super welcoming,” Blanck said. “It’s kind of a different dynamic this year after losing Calia Chaney and Lauren Kalenberg. They were a big part of the team last year, but the team this year has been super welcoming. I’ve made some good friendships and it’s awesome to be surrounded by girls who want to push themselves to be better every day.”

Blanck marvels at sophomore Grillo, who has been Brainerd’s top skier all season.

“She’s done a lot of training outside of our team in Colorado, Utah and done a lot of traveling,” Blanck said. “Having her come back and just being a stronger skier is super awesome to see. I’m proud of her.”

Teagan Burton placed eighth in 57.25, while Kelsey Pape finished ninth in 57.71. Just outside the top 10 was Katja Yliniemi in 11th in 58.62.

“Piper is a threat to win every race and Sophia is not very far behind,” Warrior head coach Jim Ruttger said. “You add Cece to the mix and that’s our one-two-three punch for the rest of the season. We’re trying to figure out who’s going to be the four, five and six. Svea (Streeter) has been skiing really well, but she had a DQ tonight in one of her runs, so it didn’t reflect in her scoring. Teagan has also really elevated this year. It’s really encouraging to watch the team develop.”

On the boys’ side, Drew Cline led the way with a third-place 46.54 to help the Warriors score 146 points.

Derek Halbur placed fourth, Jagger Klecatsky fifth and Reef Sampson sixth.

“This is the third meet in a row where both teams have won and it’s kind of becoming an expectation,” Ruttger said. “We didn’t get a first or second on the boys side, but we were consistent and the times were so tight.”

Jacob Halbur placed 12th, while Beau Thuringer finished 25th.

“It’s really nice to have a good team this year,” Cline said. “We don’t really have one star racer, but the whole team is just solid. We have a lot of depth, which is really nice. It’s a lot less stressful knowing that if you don’t do well, someone else can pick up where you went down.”

Brainerd is at Giants Ridge Saturday, Jan. 18, for the MLK race. It will be the Warriors first time on the state meet hill.

Sections for Brainerd are scheduled in three weeks on Tuesday, Feb. 4, at Wild Mountain.

“I’m just trying to ski aggressively and putting it all out there,” Blanck said .”Confidence is worth two seconds, that’s what Lauren Kalenberg always used to say, so I think that’s really true. It’s just about being confident and not regretting laying it all out there.”

CONRAD ENGSTROM may be reached at 218-855-5861 or conrad.engstrom@brainerddispatch.com. Follow on Twitter at www.twitter.com/the_rad34.