Athletes also lead Intermountain Division in regional victory
EBS STAFF
The Bridger Ski Foundation thrived at the U.S. Junior National Cross-Country Championships, which wrapped up on March 16, becoming the top overall club champion with nine individual podium finishes including junior national champions Tula Higman and Callahan Waters.
The event took place at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Utah, where BSF athletes also helped the Intermountain Division win the Alaska Cup, an award given to the top performing region at junior nationals.
“For the Bridger Ski Foundation Nordic Comp Team, years of emphasizing the importance of building a strong team atmosphere paid off this past week,” a BSF news release stated.
Nordic Program Director Andrew Morehouse praised his athletes, most of whom had personal bests throughout the week.
“These results are the culmination of months and years of hard work by these athletes. Most importantly, the BSF athletes showed up as fantastic teammates to the whole [intermountain] region. They demonstrated why an inclusive, fun and relaxed team atmosphere helps position people to compete at their best,” Morehouse stated in the release.
Tula Higman dominated the U16 women’s classic championship by a 25-second margin across the 5-kilometer course. She also earned a silver medal in the U16 women’s 7.5K freestyle distance race.
Teammate Necia Nicholas took bronze in the U18 women’s 10 km.
Callahan Waters took the title in U18 freestyle sprint—his sister, Isabella, took second in the same event for U16—and finished second by .5 seconds in the U18 men’s 7.5K.
Six BSF athletes earned All-American status as top-10 finishers during a “rigorous” sprint day, the release noted.
To settle the tightly contested Alaska cup, BSF athletes teamed up with other Intermountain Division skiers for the classic mixed relays. In U20, Landon Wyatt and Necia Nicholas were on the winning team, beating out New England. In the U18 category, Isabella and Callahan Waters helped Intermountain also take home the gold. Higman was part of the bronze-medal team in the U16 relay.
“I cannot be more proud of how our athletes competed and carried themselves throughout a week of hard and challenging competition,” Morehouse stated. Detailed results are available in the BSF news release.
