Mount Greylock Girls, Boys Win at Notchview
WINDSOR, Mass. – There were close battles throughout Wednesday’s mass start Nordic ski race at Notchview Reservation.
But none weightier than a pair of sprints to the finish won by Mount Greylock girls.
At the head of the girls pack, Mountie Anne Miller fended off sister and teammate Lauren Miller for a two-second victory for the second time in two races.
In the middle of the 37-racer girls field, Mount Greylock’s Antonia Wied edged Wahconah’s Skylar Rosier for 23rd place – with displacement, a 21st place finish that gave Mount Greylock the final score it needed to earn a team victory over Amherst by just three points.
It was the first time in three events this season that anyone has caught the Hurricane girls.
For a Mount Greylock team that went undefeated in the league a year ago, this year’s second- and third-place finishes have been unfamiliar territory.
But senior Anne Miller has been glad to see Amherst come on to push perennial powers Mount Greylock and Lenox.
“I think it helps [going into the state meet on Feb. 13],” she said. “It’s fun to have competition as a team. I’m also really happy that there are other teams doing well in the league. It’s not always fun to dominate. But we’ll see how States go.
“We know that Amherst is the team to beat, so if someone from our team sees an Amherst girl ahead of them, it gives us extra motivation to catch them.”
After the Miller sisters’ 1-2 finish, Mia Holmgren placed sixth for Mount Greylock to put the Mounties in position against the Hurricanes, who had four finishers in the top 11 places.
The Mounties also got some help from Wahconah’s Vienna Mahar and Lenox’s Jane Elliot, who placed third and fourth, respectively, to push Amherst’s top racer, Elizabeth Sawicki, into fifth place.
Elliot led the Millionaires to a third-place finish on Wednesday.
The fourth county team in the seven-team league (including Amherst, Mohawk Trail and Simsbury, Conn.) is Hoosac Valley, which only has individual racers this winter. Kim Mach represented the Hurricanes in the girls race, placing 20th.
Hoosac Valley’s David Scholz was 12th in the 56-racer boys field, a race again dominated by Mount Greylock.
The Mounties took six of the top seven finishes, led by individual champ Ollie Swabey, who was 23 seconds ahead of the field on the 6-kilometer course.
The only non-Mountie in the top seven was Wahconah’s Fritz Sanders, who led his team to a second-place finish.
Mount Greylock’s scoring was rounded out by Declan Rogers, Jude Bakija and Knowl Stroud.
Lenox’s boys placed fourth in the team standings behind a 13th-place finish from Fin Jolly.
The Mounties, who have won each of this year’s races handily, figure to be strong contenders for a fourth straight state championship on Feb. 13 at Vermont’s Prospect Mountain.
Mount Greylock’s girls, who were third in Woodford, Vt., a year ago, may not be the favorite this time around. But they will have strong contenders for top individual honors in Anne and Lauren Miller, who were seventh and ninth, respectively, in the 2023 state championships.
With Wednesday’s mass start format instead of the more common wave start, both sisters knew just where they stood throughout the race.
“We tried to stay away from everyone else at the start, and then took turns leading until the very end,” Lauren Miller said. “She tried to make a move, and stayed right behind her and passed her on the downhill.
“It’s really fun [battling Lauren for the top spot]. We also train together, so we know each others’ strengths and weaknesses. We know when we want to go hard and when we want to sit back behind the other person.”
The league has one more date on the calendar before states. It will return to Notchview for a race on Saturday morning.
Boys Team Scores
1. Mount Greylock, 12 points; 2. Wahconah, 43; 3. Mohawk Trail, 61; 4. Lenox, 64; 5. Amherst, 79; 6. Simsbury, 134.
Boys Top 10
1. Oliver Swabey, MG, 17:10; 2. Fritz Sanders, W, 17:33; 3. Jude Bakija, MG, 17:37; 4. Declan Rogers, MG, 17:37; 5. Knowl Stroud, MG, 17:39; 6. Quinn McDermott, MG, 18:16; 7. Simon Shin, MG, 18:30; 8. Augustus Niswonger, MT, 18:35; t-9. Vincent Gauthier, MT, 18:47; t-9: Nathan Miller, W, 18:47.
Girls Team Scores
1. Mount Greylock, 30 points; 2. Amherst, 33; 3. Lenox, 44; 4. Mohawk Trail, 61; 5. Wahconah 68.
Girls Top 10
1. Anne Miller, MG, 20:58; 2. Lauren Miller, MG, 21:00; 3. Vienna Mahar, W, 22:06; 4. Jane Elliot, L, 23:21; 5. Elizabeth Sawicki, A, 23:38; 6. Mia Holmgren, MG, 23:41; 7. Zoey Candito, A, 23:45; 8. Charlotte Niswonger, MT, 23:52; 9. Corinne Somes, MT, 24:09; 10. Addie Mager, A, 24:32.