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Boys Section Championships

After wrapping up a conference title, the Chisago Lakes boys alpine ski team only had one thing on it's mind: the state tournament.

And if they've taught any teams anything this year, it's that when they are skiing with a focus, they are hard to stop. Such was the case at sections.

With the top four skiers making up scoring, the Wildcats needed every bit of their energy to nip defending section champion Duluth East.

"After the first run, all six boys had clean runs. We were in good shape, but it is only half way there," Head Coach Dan Raedeke said. "The boys all needed to have strong second runs, and they did."

East had the top two finishers in the race, but Philip Bottjen came in at fifth place with a time of 1:14.33, and after that, it was the consistency which put CL over the Greyhounds.

In seventh and eighth place, Mark Sandgren and Steve Wagner finished in 1:16.02 and 1:16.12, respectively.

Joe Cartier rounded out the top four skiers for the Wildcats, as he finished in 10th place with a time of 1:17.65.

East had the 12th and 17th place finishers also to make it a razor-thin margin at the end.

The Wildcats tallied 386 points to finish in the top spot, and the Greyhounds were right on their heels, scoring 384 points. Hermantown came in third with a score of 335.

"The first four boys came down with clean, strong runs," Raedeke noted. "The course was starting to get into rough shape -- there was holes in the snow and large ruts from all the races. The last two boys in the lineup then came down with great times."

The top four finishers for CL would've qualified for the state meet anyway, since the top 10 automatically make it to Giants Ridge.

Girls Section Championships

Although the girls didn't win the Northwest Suburban Conference title like the boys, they still had the goal of the state tournament in their sights, and they didn't disappoint.

With a small margin for error, the 'Cats squeezed by Hermantown, who finished in third place in both races.

"The girls also had strong first runs," Coach Raedeke noted. "The second run went well too, with only a few small mistakes."

The pace-setter for the Wildcats, like it has been all season, was Simone Raedeke. The senior finished in second place in the meet with a time of 1:25.88. She was only 1.2 seconds off the first place time of Amy Sienko of Duluth East.

The next Wildcat down the standings was Katy Garbe. She had two solid runs that placed her in fifth place. Her combined time was 1:29.92.

Teresa Sandberg and Katie Rayer finished off the top four skiers for the Wildcats, and finished off in enough places to earn a berth in the state tournament. Sandberg came in 25th place with a time of 1:40.02, and Rayer came in 28th place with a time of 1:40.40.

The Wildcats earned 304 points to put them in second place. The Lady Greyhounds won the section with a score of 320.

"All three seniors had there best race to date. Simone, Katy and Philip's leadership really helped the team," Raedeke said. "Both teams worked together they skied as a team, worked as a team. None of the members of ether team skied for themselves, they skied for the team and it showed at sections."

Both Wildcat squads hope they can continue their strong skiing into the state tournament today up at Giants Ridge.

Lakeville South is favored on the girls side, as they won last year, and return the individual state champion.

On the boys side of the draw, Duluth East, who the Wildcats beat, are the highest returning qualifier from last years state tournament. The Greyhounds finished in second place last year.

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