Ravens Sweep OUA Nordic Skiing Championships

The Carleton Ravens swept the OUA Nordic Skiing Championships over the weekend, winning their fourth straight women's title and tenth men's title. 

The Ravens have now won 27 combined OUA championships, including nine of the last ten women's championships.

Carleton got their weekend off to a great start on Friday in the 15 km mass start, securing a pair of podiums in both the men's and women's races. In the men's competition, a tight men's race, Graeme Abbott led a three-man lead group, pulling ahead of former Raven Aidan Kirkham in the second lap and holding on in a sprint finish. 

Nathaniel Sneyd hung with the men's leaders the whole race and was a close third, just 0.3 seconds behind Kirkham.

The women's race quickly formed into a three-person race as Helen McCulligh, Sophia Giangrande and former Raven Bronwyn Williams broke away from the pack in the opening lap. McCulligh and Williams traded leads late in the second lap, but Williams was able to pull away entering the stadium for the win. McCulligh and Giangrande finished second and third, while Beth Marchant, Maya Abraham and Maddy Galik all finished in the top 20.

After a night of heavy snow, the Ravens continued to soar on Saturday with Mculligh coming second in the 9KM free technique. At the same time, Giangrade, Marchant, and Maya Abraham all finished in the top ten. 

On the men's side, Carleton cleared a path to the top of the podium with a dominant morning. Nathaniel Snyed improved on his Friday by two spots, capturing OUA gold, while Abbott settled for silver. After Aidan Kirkham claimed bronze, the Ravens swept the next four positions with Seamus Williams, Kaeden Ward, Erik Vurma and Isaac Fortin all finishing fourth through seventh. Wes Robinson-Shaw, eleventh, and Noah Vanderzon, sixteenth, rounded out the Ravens' scoring. Jake Littlejohn, who was a non-scoring member of the team, finished ahead of Vanderzon in fifteenth.

Under pristine conditions on Sunday, the Ravens men continued to show their depth, capturing silver and bronze in the men's relay. Carleton was hundreds of a second behind Lakehead for silver, with Kaeden Ward, Nathaniel Sneyd and Graeme Abbott putting together an impressive relay. Isaac Fortin, Seamus Williams and Noah Vanderzon were on the bronze medal team, finishing 13 seconds behind the winners.

In the women's race, Carleton showed their depth, capturing gold by 35 seconds over the Gee-Gees. The team of Giangrande, Marchant and McCulligh raced to the top of the podium, while Carleton Team B, made up of Fiona McClure, Tessa Quinn-Crook and Maya Abraham, finished two seconds ahead of Nipissing to capture bronze. 

For the women, the win marks their fourth consecutive title and ninth since 2016. Capturing their 17th OUA women's championship, the Ravens are now tied with Lakehead for the most all-time.

The Ravens' tenth men's title cements them firmly in second in OUA history and breaks a run of four straight wins by the Thunderwolves. The last time Lakehead had lost the men's competition was also in 2020 when Carleton captured the banner. No school other than Carleton or Lakehead has won the OUA title in 25 years, since Laurentian won in 2001.