Palmer boys take 1st at Skyview

On a crisp weekend atop slick trails, Bree Mucha kept the Skyview Invitational cross-country skiing title in the family.

A year after older sister Kailey accomplished the same feat, the Soldotna High School junior won a pair of races to win an individual girls championship and lead the Stars to the girls team trophy Friday and Saturday at Tsalteshi Trails at Skyview High School.

Palmer took the boys crown behind Schyler Knopp, who placed first in both boys races.

Kenai Central, Skyview and Homer joined the field, which also included Colony, Grace Christian and Valdez.

Mucha edged teammate Maranda Merkes to win the six-kilometer freestyle in 15 minutes, 57.9 seconds, Friday before taking the 7.5-kilometer classic in 23:36.9 on Saturday. Merkes was the runner-up in that race as well.

SoHi finished with a two-day, team time of 2:50:51, topping Grace Christian (3:05:15) and Palmer (3:12:49) for the girls crown on a weekend when the temperatures slid toward zero.

Cold weather made for fast skiing surfaces, something Mucha said she enjoyed because she didn’t have to use a lot of kick wax on her skis and still was able to get a pretty good kick. The trails were fastest Friday, when races began at 5:30 p.m., but were still quick as the day progressed under sunny skies Saturday.

For Mucha, whose sister was a four-time region champion before graduating in 2010, the victory gave her confidence heading into the second half of a season in which her aspirations are high. The athlete’s goal is to help the girls squad win a region title and finish among the state’s top-10 skiers by season’s end.

The result of the favorable weather was a competitive meet between the seven girls teams and eight boys teams that made the trip to Skyview.

Michele Klaben earned a pair of top-10 finishes for the Kenai Central girls, who placed fifth as a team, while D.Anne Martin contributed to SoHi’s title by earning two fourth-place finishes. The Homer girls placed sixth, while host Skyview took seventh.

Knopp of Palmer set the tone in the boys competition, winning Friday’s race in 13:47.0 and Saturday’s race in 27:55.6, more than 30 seconds ahead of runner-up Michael Luke of SoHi.

It was the first victory in a meet of this size for Knopp, a junior who said the conditions enabled him to push the pace.

“For me it just means going harder throughout the race because it’s going to be shorter in time,” he said of his approach when the surface is slick. “So it’s just really pushing throughout the entire course.”

In the opening race Friday, Andre Lovett of Homer finished second to Knopp. Lovett placed 14th a day later, but a pair of top-10 finishes by teammate Brayden Holt lifted the Mariners to second place overall.

The Homer boys also received ninth- and 10th-place individual finishes from Parker Sorenson, ending the weekend with a time of 3:07:00 as a team.

Palmer’s 3:03:53 was tops, while Skyview took third in 3:09:49 and SoHi fourth in 3:09:56. Colony, Grace, Kenai Central and Valdez finished fifth through eighth, respectively.

Skyview Invitational

Friday, Saturday

at Tsalteshi Trails

GIRLS

Total team times: 1. Soldotna, 2 hours, 50 minutes, 51 seconds; 2. Grace, 3:05:15; 3. Palmer, 3:12:49; 4. Colony, 3:13:49; 5. Kenai, 3:14:24; 6. Homer, 3:18:08; 7. Skyview, 3:25:39.

Friday’s 6-kilometer freestyle

1. Bree Mucha, Sol, 15:57; 2. Maranda Merkes, Sol, 16:57; 3. Michelle Klaben, Ken, 17:07; 4. D.Anne Martin, Sol, 17:38; 5. Anna Trujillo, Gra, 17:59; 6. Abby Jahn, Col, 18:24; 7. Hannah Smith, Pal, 18:51; 8. Mackenzie Barnwell, Sew, 18:51; 9. Emily Merioles, Val, 19:05; 10. Hannah Norris, Val, 19:06.

Saturday’s 7.5-kilometer classic

1. Bree Mucha, Sol, 23:36; 2. Maranda Merkes, Sol, 23:45; 3. Hannah Smith, Pal, 25:17; 4. D.Anne Martin, Sol, 25:34; 5. Abby Jahn, Col, 25:41; 6. Hannah Norris, Val, 26:14; 7. Anna Trujillo, Gra, 26:24; 8. Kayla Rowe, Gra, 26:43; 9. Michelle Klaben, Ken, 26:56; 10. Claire Trujillo, Gra, 27:05.

BOYS

Total team times: 1. Palmer, 3:03:53; 2. Homer, 3:07:00; 3. Skyview, 3:09:49; 4. Soldotna, 3:09:56; 5. Colony, 3:09:57; 6. Grace, 3:15:22; 7. Kenai, 3:19:23; 8. Valdez, 3:19:33.

Friday’s 6-kilometer freestyle

1. Schyler Knopp, Pal, 13:47; 2. Andre Lovett, Hom, 13:58; 3. Abe Meyerhofer, Col, 14:00; 4. Luke Michael, Sol, 14:04; 5. Brayden Holt, Sky, 14:23; 6. Leif Danielson, Sky, 14:26; 7. James Watkins, Ken, 14:44; 8. IntiMayo Harbison, Sol, 14:47; 9. Parker Sorenson, Hom, 14:52; 10. Daniel Serventi, Gra, 15:04.

Saturday’s 10-kilometer classic

1. Schyler Knopp, Pal, 27:55; 2. Luke Michael, Sol, 28:30; 3. Abe Meyerhofer, Col, 29:04; 4. Leif Danielson, Sky, 30:09; 5. Jesse Dahms, Pal, 30:46; 6. James Watkins, Ken, 30:48; 7. Daniel Serventi, Gra, 30:50; 8. Connor Mattson, Was, 30:54; 9. Brayden Holt, Sky, 30:56; 10. Parker Sorenson, Hom, 31:19.