Holt takes third at Soldier Hollow qualifier sprint

The Glacier Nordic Ski Team came away from the second Junior Olympic Qualifier on Jan. 29-30 at Soldier Hollow, Utah, in good position to send three racers to nationals later this winter.

Reigning J2 Nordic national champion Stella Holt posted a 14th-place finish overall in the women's J1 10-kilometer race and found the podium with a third-place finish in the sprints. She was seventh in her age group in the 10-kilometer race — 4:35.0 back of top-finisher Caitlin Compton of the U.S. Ski Team.

Holt excelled in the sprints on Saturday by beating a number of racers from across the West.

In those two races alone, Holt scored enough points to all but assure her a slot in the National Junior Olympics.

"The sprint day was very good for Stella," coach Ben Morley said. "She's been sick and hurt, so this is pretty big to do as well as she did."

Not far behind Holt, Anne Miller finished 22nd overall in the 10-kilometer race and 10th in the sprints.

Morley said Miller has been skiing really well lately and had good races on both days. She moved up two spots in the points ranking system to place her at eighth among J1 women. Miller will make the national team barring a dramatic fall off in the next qualifier. Holt is ranked No. 3 in the same division.

Jack Steele posted a 45:04.5 on the men's J1 15-kilometer course, good enough for 15th overall and fifth among Intermountain region skiers.

In the race, skiers lapped the 5-kilometer course three times, with each lap including about 570 feet of elevation gain. Steele finished the first lap in 17th but fought back in his final two to move into the top-15.

"It's an Olympic course and is very hilly," Morley said. "It has lots of technical corners."

Steele, like Miller, will make the national squad if he continues to ski as well as he has been through the next qualifier. He is currently ranked ninth in his division.

Madison Grady, the team's only J2 women's racer, took 35th place in the 5-kilometer race and 33rd in the sprints.

Among J2 men, Connor Gray finished the 5-kilometer race in 17:22.4 — good enough for 34th place. Fischer Gangemi was close behind to finish in 38th overall.

"Every time we go to one of these races, it's good experience for them," Morley said about the J2 racers. "I always think that at the next qualifier we'll do better."

Henry Holt took fourth in the 3-kilometer J3 race with a time of 11:32.6.

Morley said conditions at the event were prime for racing, with cold mornings and blue-sky afternoons.

The team's next qualifier will be at Bogus Basin in Idaho on Feb. 12-13.