The Westonka Nordic ski team competed in a 5k classic race at Hyland Hills in Bloomington on a cold afternoon January 19. The White Hawks boys team finished third of seven teams, and the girls team finished fourth.

“I was impressed with the positive attitudes on the team,” said head coach Sue Harrison. “It was a frigid day, and we heard very little complaining about the cold and lots of smiles and excitement about [the] races.”

Senior Lance Nemecek finished in seventh place overall with a time of 15:48 (just 10 seconds behind the fourth-place finisher). Also finishing in the Top 25 were seniors Josh Engesser (15th), Max Epsky (18th) and Haakon Erdahl (23rd). Rounding out the scoring for the White Hawks was junior Adrian Overbo (38th) in his first classic race in two years.

The White Hawks girls were led by senior Anna Elliott, who finished in 25th place, with sophomore Averie Zealley close behind in 27th. Also scoring for the were sophomore Anna Wood (33rd), senior Anika Budzius (38th) and foreign exchange student Felicia Klassen (51st) in her first classic race.