Find Out Which Westonka Skier is Headed to State

Westonka's Nordic ski team concluded Section 2 competition at Theodore Wirth Park last week by sending sophomore Scott Harrison to compete at the state level.  

Harrison's 10k pursuit time of 28:20 earned a 6th place finish among 73 skiers.  

"Scott had the ninth fastest time in the 5K classic race, which put him in a good starting position for the 5K skate race, where he finished 3rd," said head coach Sue Harrison. "He wasn't intimidated by the competition. He was focused every second and never let up. It was the best race I've ever seen him have."  

There is no Class A/Class AA distinction in Minnesota high school Nordic skiing. This year's realignment of Section 2 now pits Westonka (644 students) against mega-districts Eden Prairie (3,007 students) and Minnetonka (2,750 students). Wayzata (3,060 students) was and still is in Section 2.  

"With only one class, it's really difficult for a small school to advance a team," said coach Harrison. "Our section is incredibly tough."  

Of the 15 boys state qualifiers, Harrison was the only skier not from Eden Prairie or Minnetonka, the No. 2 and No. 4 ranked teams in the state, respectively.

Despite the deeper competition, the boy's team of Harrison senior captains Jack Inglis and Bjorn Larson, juniors Grant Piepkorn, Dan Humbert and Tommy Tully and sophomore Kole Retterath moved up a notch to finish in 4th place out of 12 teams. Westonka's 320 points trailed just Minnetonka (389), Eden Prairie (380) and Elk River/Zimmerman (325 points).  

The Westonka girls finished in 9th place of 13 teams. Skiing were senior Karly Boll, Shawna Heilman and Heidi Dotzenroth and sophomores Mackenzie Strehle, Maddie Halgren, Katie Linder and Rose Inglis.  

Of the 15 girls state qualifiers, only Holy Family's Nellie Bubb was from a team other than Eden Prairie, Wayzata or Minnetonka.  

Wayzata won the Section in a tie breaker with Eden Prairie.

The state tournament will be skied tomorrow, Feb. 16, at Giant's Ridge in Biwabik, MN.