HOUGHTON, Mich. – Sophomore
Andreas Kirkeng earned two more top-10 finishes this weekend to wrap up a week's worth of races at the U.S. Cross Country National Championships in Michigan.
The Lier, Norway, native placed ninth in the 20-kilometer classic on Friday and fourth in Saturday's freestyle sprints at the adjacent trail system of the Michigan Tech campus.
Kirkeng completed the four laps on Friday in 52.26.5, which included leading the mass start race after the first lap with a 12:58.3 split.
Senior
Bernhard Flaschberger came in 15th in the 20K (53:18.7), while DU's other three men all placed inside the top 55.
Sivert Wulff was 34th,
Jonah Steinberg was 41st and
Elijah Weenig was 54th.
Denver split its women's group between the 20K classic and the 10K junior race on Friday. Junior
Hanna Ray led the Pios in 28th (1:04:58.2) in the 20K mass start, and senior
Vera Norli placed 36th (1:06:12.4). In the 10K junior event, sophomore
Sidney Barbier was 26th (34:36.9) and
Bettina Burgess was 36th (34:57.1).
In Saturday's freestyle sprints, Kirkeng and Burgess were the only Denver athletes to get out of qualifying and had good runs in the subsequent rounds. Kirkeng competed at the senior level while Burgess was with the juniors.
Kirkeng was the eighth-fastest qualifier and won his quarterfinal heat. He advanced to the finals after coming in second in the semis and posted a 2:25.95 time in the final to earn a fourth-place finish.
Burgess was 77th overall in women's qualifying but advanced through the junior bracket and placed eighth overall. The Boulder, Colorado, native posted a 3:02.95 time in the semifinals and missed out on moving on to the finals by just 79-hundredeths of a second.
While Saturday's freestyle sprints were held in conjunction with U.S. Nationals, the race was not considered a national championship and was a U.S. Super Tour event only.
The Pioneers opened the U.S. National Championships with the 10K freestyle and classic sprints on Monday and Wednesday, which also doubled as RMISA Nordic Qualifier races to begin their 2023 collegiate season. Those races gave the athletes additional opportunities to qualify for the NCAA Championships in March.
Below are full Denver results from the last two days of racing in Houghton.
Friday, Jan. 6
Women's 20K Classic
28.
Hanna Ray, 1:04:58.2
36.
Vera Norli, 1:06:12.4
Men's 20K Classic
9.
Andreas Kirkeng, 52.26.5
15.
Bernhard Flaschberger, 53:18.7
34.
Sivert Wulff, 55:18.6
41.
Jonah Steinberg, 56:10.2
54.
Elijah Weenig, 57:23.7
Women's Junior 10K Classic
26.
Sidney Barbier, 34:36.9
36.
Bettina Burgess, 34:57.1
Saturday, Jan. 7
Men's Freestyle Sprint
4.
Andreas Kirkeng, 2:28.40 QFT / 2:24.28 QF/ 2:24.49 SF / 2:25.95 F
43.
Elijah Weenig, 2:35.30 QFT
65.
Sivert Wulff, 2:38.27 QFT
71.
Jonah Steinberg, 2:38.79 QFT
Women's Freestyle Sprint
66.
Bettina Burgess, 3:13.72 QFT
77.
Sidney Barbier, 3:16.61 QFT
Women's Junior Freestyle Sprint
8.
Bettina Burgess, 3:13.72 QFT / 3:03.66 QF / 3:02.95 SF
UP NEXT: The Pioneers' Nordic squad will be split next weekend, as half will compete for their respective countries at the World University Games in Lake Placid, New York, while the other half will be in Bozeman, Montana, for the Montana State Invitational. The first RMISA meet of the season starts with the 15K classic mass start on Friday before the 5/10K freestyle interval start on Saturday.
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