The Bromfield/North Middlesex boys ski team took second place while the girls placed seventh in the fifth and penultimate race of the season in the Massachusetts Bay State West Alpha Division on Tuesday, Feb. 6, at the Nashoba Valley Ski Area. Heavy, wet snow coated the course, making for deep ruts between gates and difficult terrain.
Led by senior and co-captain Oscar Pride, who took first place with a time of 24.71 seconds, the boys claimed second out of nine teams, falling to Westford Academy by 8 points. Pride has earned first place in three of five races this season and is ranked first in the Alpha Division, which is one of two in the Bay West League and includes nine teams.
Oscar Pride skis to first place in difficult conditions on Feb. 13, making it his third first-place of this season. (Courtesy photo)
With one race left in the regular season, the Bromfield/North Middlesex boys team was one win away from tying for first in the league, with a record of 44-4 to Westford Academy’s 45-3.
The girls placed seventh, trailing sixth-place Groton-Dunstable by 10 points, with a record of 15-33. Audrey Slavin and Madison Rausch were the top finishers for the girls team, placing 17th and 18th, respectively.
In the season, there are two types of races: giant slalom and slalom. In both, skiers race through gates to get the fastest time. Slalom, in which the gates are placed closer together, requires more precise turns and can be slower and more difficult than giant slalom, in which the gates are placed farther apart. There are three slalom and three giant slalom races in the season; the race Feb. 6 was the second of three slalom races.
With the end of the regular season approaching, the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association Alpine ski championship is next for select skiers. Several racers, including Pride, Cole Maddalone, Owen Wood, Rowan McCarthy, and Rausch are likely to qualify for the state championship, which will take place on Tuesday, Feb. 27, at Wachusett Mountain.
Coach Boris Ivanov said of the team, “It doesn’t matter how good you are, since you can always be better. What’s special is that they all want to be better.”
The team wrapped up their regular season with one more slalom race, scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 13.
Annabelle Purcell is a freshman at the Bromfield School.
Bromfield/North Middlesex boys (top 5 finishers)
- Oscar Pride (24.71 seconds), first
- Owen Wood (27.82), 11th
- Cole Maddalone (28.38), 14th
- Rowan McCarthy (30.40), 22nd
- Andrew Brown (30.86), 23rd
Bromfield/North Middlesex girls (top 5 finishers)
- Audrey Slavin (35.04 seconds), 17th
- Madison Rausch (35.29), 18th
- Anna Ivanov (38.75), 26th
- Sophia Purcell (45), 40th
- Maya Ivanov (49.24), 43rd
