BY ED DAVIS
Clarkston News Sports Writer
The Clarkston High School boys and girls varsity ski teams are as persistent as old man winter himself ? they just keep coming back for more. The Wolves capped off yet another stellar season this year, but not before setting some history of their own.
This year marked the first year a Clarkston skier was crowned an individual state champion. Junior captain Mo Weiland took the honor Feb. 24 at Nubs Nob by winning the slalom. She took second place in the giant slalom.
‘It was something I was shooting for all year,? Weiland said. ‘I think to have a down-state skier win it was really a big deal. I’ve just been working really, really hard for it and I think I wanted it more than anyone else did.?
Weiland, who has been skiing since she was four and racing since her freshman year, credits a lot of off-season work in helping her reach her greatest skiing achievement. She attended a ski camp in Whistler, Canada near Vancouver in the summer and also put in additional time in Winter Park, Colo., a few hours outside of Denver at another camp around Thanksgiving. This in addition to the hours and hours she and the rest of the Wolves put in during the course of the season.
‘Basically every weekend from November to now I’ve been putting in additional practice outside of all the work we do as a team,? Weiland said. ‘I just love to ski. It’s always a beautiful atmosphere, especially at places like Colorado and up in Canada. There’s always a lot of great people involved.?
Weiland’s fellow captain teammates were other Wolf standouts, Lindsay Mozer and Jackie Bland. Mozer was named All-State third team while Bland was named honorable mention. Head coach Bruce Rosengren credited the three for being the backbone of another strong Clarkston team.
‘All year those three girls were very strong for us,? he said. ‘Also, I think Jennifer Stanton did a great job for us. She was consistent, strong and especially considering she was a first-year varsity skier I think she did a great job for us. Same thing with Alyssa Vermeulen. These girls really stepped up for us this year after we lost four starters on the girls team.?
The girls had an outstanding season complete with going a perfect 9-0 in the regular season, winning their eighth straight regional title, winning the SEMSL Meet for the third straight year and taking fourth place overall in the state meet.
The girls team loses Bland, Mozer, Nina Jackson and Kaura Kovacic, but Rosengren is already looking forward to next season and has some strong skiers he’s looking forward to joining the team. Among them are eighth graders Erica Halsey and Anna Wolf.
‘I don’t want to take Michigan’s motto of saying we don’t rebuild, we reload, but I think that’s kind of where we’re at. We’re definitely ready for those two girls to join our team. They’re going to make a strong impact,? Rosengren said.
The girls weren’t alone in their achievement of going undefeated. The boys team followed suit also going 9-0. Additionally, they won the OAA I, their third straight regional and their fourth straight SEMSL title. Furthermore, the Wolves took second place at the Traverse City Invitational while beating state powerhouses Petoskey and Marquette in the slalom. The Wolves capped off the season by placing fifth in the state meet overall. They have finished third the last two seasons, Rosengren said.
‘We dug ourselves a hole in the giant slalom,? he said. ‘We finished third in the slalom and I don’t think the conditions helped us any. There was about eight inches of snow the day of the race and while that affects everybody, I think the kids from up north are probably used to practicing in those conditions a lot more than we are.?
Alex Rosengren was a standout skier this year winning every dual meet he competed in at Pine Knob. He was also a divisional, regional and SEMSL winner. There, he was the first Wolf to win the slalom and giant slalom since assistant coach Tami Mitchell did it in 1990. He was one of several Wolves from the boys team to be named to the All-State Team. Fellow captain Kevin Vahlbusch made the second team while the third boys team captain Jeff Haladik made the third team, along with freshman Eric Weiland.
‘It’s tough to make varsity as a freshman,? Rosengren said. ‘He made top four in just about every race he was in. He was real solid for us this season. Kevin never had a DQ for us this year and he made points in every race he was in. He never hiked. Jeff was solid too. This being his first year on varsity, he was especially tought. All three did slalom and giant slalom. They were all big for us this year.?