March 7, 2005
LAKEHEAD TAKES NATIONAL NORDIC TITLE
It took a day to tabulate the results but it's official; both the Lakehead Thunderwolves men's and women's teams are CIS-CCUNC national champions. Lakehead's Skeets Morel and Stephen Hart were named All-Canadians at the championships which were held in Prince George, BC as part of the overall Canadian Nordic Championships. Conditions were challenging all week as the warm temperatures were in the low double digits all week.
Lakehead's men placed first ahead of Calgary and Carleton while the women were first ahead of Carleton and Augustana University College of Alberta. Lakehead was competing against 19 universities and colleges from across Canada for the national titles.
The men's team was led in Friday's sprint race by Skeets Morel who placed first among the university and college skiers; and also came sixth overall in Canada which is quite an accomplishment since Canada is very strong in the sprints. Hart had become ill after Sunday's relay but still raced hard all week and earned valuable team points. On the women's side, Rena Bode also became ill but still was Lakehead's top sprinter on Friday and earned precious team points.
Lakehead Head Coach Lisa Patterson was very proud of her team's efforts in the balmy conditions in Prince George. \"I'm extremely happy now with our results. Skeets coming in 6th overall in Canada was a fantastic result and Stephen and Rena racing so well while they were ill was incredible. Also, there's quite a huge buzz here in Prince George that Lakehead is the place to be to combine competitive skiing and to get an education. This is great news for our program and for Lakehead University as there have been nothing but positives here about Lakehead and its athletes.\"
MEN'S MEDALLISTS
1) Lakehead - 983.4 points
2) Calgary - 974.1 points
3) Carleton - 938.8 points
WOMEN'S MEDALLISTS
1) Lakehead - 923.9 points
2) Carleton - 892.7 points
3) Augustana University College - 845.5 points
(Source: Mike Aylward, Lakehead Sports Information)
Lakehead's men placed first ahead of Calgary and Carleton while the women were first ahead of Carleton and Augustana University College of Alberta. Lakehead was competing against 19 universities and colleges from across Canada for the national titles.
The men's team was led in Friday's sprint race by Skeets Morel who placed first among the university and college skiers; and also came sixth overall in Canada which is quite an accomplishment since Canada is very strong in the sprints. Hart had become ill after Sunday's relay but still raced hard all week and earned valuable team points. On the women's side, Rena Bode also became ill but still was Lakehead's top sprinter on Friday and earned precious team points.
Lakehead Head Coach Lisa Patterson was very proud of her team's efforts in the balmy conditions in Prince George. \"I'm extremely happy now with our results. Skeets coming in 6th overall in Canada was a fantastic result and Stephen and Rena racing so well while they were ill was incredible. Also, there's quite a huge buzz here in Prince George that Lakehead is the place to be to combine competitive skiing and to get an education. This is great news for our program and for Lakehead University as there have been nothing but positives here about Lakehead and its athletes.\"
MEN'S MEDALLISTS
1) Lakehead - 983.4 points
2) Calgary - 974.1 points
3) Carleton - 938.8 points
WOMEN'S MEDALLISTS
1) Lakehead - 923.9 points
2) Carleton - 892.7 points
3) Augustana University College - 845.5 points
(Source: Mike Aylward, Lakehead Sports Information)
