January is here and the 2025 EISA Carnival race season is about to begin! With teams gearing up and skiers revving their engines, the energy across the EISA circuit is undeniable. Similar to last year, winter has been slow to start, but between snowmaking and camps in snowy areas, teams have been able to prepare for the season. Fortunately, cold temperatures and snow have arrived just in time for the season in most areas.
The season will kick off with a sprint at the Bates Carnival in Rumford, ME. The technique has been changed from classic to skate due to weather. (Adjustments may be made late in the carnival schedule to account for the changes in the Bates carnival races.) After testing their top gear, skiers will compete in an individual start 15k skate race. This weekend is sure to deliver plenty of excitement as we see summer and fall training begin to pay-off.
NCAAs
This year NCAAs come back East and will be hosted by Dartmouth at Oak Hill Outdoor Center in Hanover, NH. The skiers on the EISA circuit are excited to be racing closer to home and have big goals surrounding these races. Opposite from last year, skiers will compete in 7.5k classic and 20k freestyle races. This is reflected in the carnival schedule, as both 20k races are skate and the 7.5k races are classic.
EISA 2025 Team Previews
Bates
The team hosting our first carnival is led by captains Nina Chosy, Eva McDonough, Dimitri Grewal, and Wyatt Teaford. They are joined by a large first-year class of five men and five women. Head Coach James Upham is excited about this stating, “we have a young core group who really want to have fun and get better. The carnival circuit fosters that so well.” While the team, according to James Upham, “had our share of pneumonia cases like everyone else,” they had great camps and are excited for the season. Captain Eva McDonough commented that the team is “excited for the Bates carnival this weekend and ready to throw down on their home course. It is really exciting to have a lot of friends and family out cheering and it’s a great way to start the season!”
Bowdoin
Bowdoin Head Coach and 2024 EISA Coach of the Year, Nathan Alsobrook, is excited for the 2025 race season to begin. The Polar Bears will be led by seniors Grace Mattern and Adam Carlisle. They will be joined by first-years Gillian Fairfax, Keira Scott, Caleb Zuckerman, Catcher Kemmerer, and Ollie Swabey. One of the team’s top scorers, Morgan Richter, graduated and is now skiing at MSU. She leaves big shoes to fill but the team is up to the challenge. The Polar Bears have Emma Crum and Jordan Grialou returning, both of whom placed top ten at the Colby carnival last season. Emma Crum was also ranked the 6th U23 at Senior Nationals this year, placing 16th overall in the 10k and 18th overall in the 20k. On the men's side, Carson Williams, who earned a top ten at the UVM carnival last season is expected to continue racing well.
Colby
According to Head Coach Tracey Cote, the team “had a great fall of training. Most of our team was healthy and consistently put in some really quality hours.” This year's team will be led by captains Jack Young, Taiga Moore, and Lola Villafranco. There are seven first years joining the team with Cote noting that they are “doing well and looking to get some experience on the Eastern College circuit.” The team will lose strong skiers Zach Nemeth as well as Gretta Sholz, who is now skiing for Team Birkie. However there is new and returning talent to fill these spots. Sophomores Maddie Hooker and Ben Lewis return after strong first years. Sophomore Andrew Defor also placed in the top five in a carnival last season and is a skier to watch this year. Senior Jack Young qualified for NCAAs last season and spent the beginning of this winter in Europe racing on the World Cup. While he will be missing the first two carnivals, he “absolutely cannot wait to get back and race with this team!” Overall the mules are really excited to get the season started!
Dartmouth
Dartmouth brings a strong team with a lot of depth to the EISA circuit every year. This year's team is led by captains Emma Reeder, Luke Allan, and Asa Chalmers. They are joined by four first years, who are all skiers to watch this season. Head Coach of the women’s team, Cami Thompson, commented that “fall had its ups and downs. Staying healthy on campus is always a challenge but we are lucky to have all of December off and had a great camp and some early season races in Silver Star.” The team also had a strong showing at senior nationals. John Steel Hagenbuch won the 10k skate race, placed 2nd in the 20k classic mass start, and 6th in the skate sprint. Nina Seeman placed 6th in the classic sprint and qualified forn U23s. First year Maeve Ingelfinger also had strong races in Anchorage and qualified for World Juniors.
According to Coach Thompson, the team is “looking forward to hosting the Dartmouth Carnival and NCAA Championships at home. There is a lot of positive energy around those events.” Dartmouth nearly had the full team on campus this fall which is “rare with the sophomore summer schedule.” Senior captain Asa said that “it was super fun to have such a big turnout at practices even when some people are out with sickness/injury.” Echoing his coach, he noted that “both our home carnival and home NCAA championships races are big goals for the team, we’re hoping to take advantage of our home courses.”
Harvard
Harvard has a young team this year with four of their nine skiers being first-years. Bennett Hutchison, Edwin Ryerson, Elias Soulé, and Hanna Wilsey join the team with seniors Quincy Donley and Tali Wong. The team also has a brand new coaching staff. Although the coaches are new to Harvard, they are not new to the area, with all being either a former EMXC coach or athlete. Harvard skiers put down some fast times at the Craftsbury opener, notably first-year Hanna Wilsey placing 4th in the 7.5k classic race and Hayden McJunkin coming in 8th in the sprint. There are endless opportunities with this new team and this could be a great rebuilding year for the program. The Crimson are excited for the first carnival with senior Tali Wong, commenting that “the vibes are great heading into the season!”
Middlebury
The Middlebury team is led by captains Shea Brams, Quincy Massey-Bierman, Jack Christner, and Logan Moore. The team is joined by first-years Julia Thurston, Ben Jenkin, and Eliot Schneider (a feb). Quincy is back from injury and is “unbelievably stoked to be back on the number one vibes circuit with the team.” Middlebury has a lot of depth with multiple members placing top ten in early season races. Head Coach Andrew Johnson is “excited to see what the team can do this season.” The team also had a great showing at Senior Nationals in Anchorage with Shea placing 10th in the 20k classic mass start and Quincy placing 13th in the classic sprint. Jack placed 6th in the classic sprint and qualified for U23s. Captain Shea Brams commented that “fall training had ups and downs for everyone but she’s super proud of the team’s resilience and pumped to come into carni season ready to fire.” “Roll pants!” - Maggie Wagner
St. Michaels
The Purple Knights will be led by captains Clara Wyatt, Izzy Quam, and Declan Hutchinson. According to Head Coach Molly Peters, “Fall training went really well for the SMC Nordic team. They feel strong and ready to race fast!” She is also “really excited about the depth of the team this year,” with six first-years joining the squad including Daniel McCollor and Keely Hendricks who have looked good in the early season. Coach Peters also commented that they “have such a solid group of skiers and any one of them could be our top skier on a given day.” The team is also “excited to have sophomore Oliver Maitke back from an injury that took him out his freshman year.”
St. Lawrence
St. Lawrence brings a large team to the EISA circuit this season led by captains Jack Hulsey and Lilli Thomas. They will be joined by a first-year class of 11 skiers. Lilli mentioned that it has been “super fun to have some new energy on the team.” Senior Emma Strack is a key returner for the team and raced well at Senior Nationals placing 11th in the 20k classic mass start. Her racing in Anchorage qualified her for U23s which the team is excited about. First-year Berit Meyers placed 23rd on her home course in the skate sprint. Returning skiers Trevor Aitken and Lucas Jenkin are also skiers to watch for this year. According to Lilli, the team is “hoping to move up a bit and hope to have more people getting some top 30s this season.” The team is also “looking forward to a fun season and some good snow!”
UNH
The University of New Hampshire Wildcats will be led by captains Hattie Barker, Jasmine Lyons, Seth Wyatt, Roger Anderson, and Eli Gore. They will be joined by a large freshman class of nine skiers. Head Coach Shane MacDowell is excited about the season stating that, “fall training has gone really well this year. Our team looks very strong and is looking to improve on last year's performances.” Returners Jasmine Lyons, Hattie Barker and Clara Hegan are skiers to look out for for top ten performances. For the men, Eli Gore, Roger Anderson, and Seth Wyatt all return to the team after qualifying for NCAAs last season. Charles Martell joined the team last year transferring from St. Michaels but was sick for the majority of last season. He has hopes to remain healthy and put down some solid performances this season. The team is excited for the season and according to MacDowell the team is looking to be “consistently in the top three each weekend.”
UVM
Winning multiple carnivals last season, UVM is sure to be a force to be reckoned with on the circuit this winter. The Catamounts have six first-years joining them this year, each with impressive racing coming into college. The team also has six skiers graduating, which according to Head Coach Patrick Weaver “makes for an interesting dynamic. It had been nice to have the upper class members pass down their knowledge and experience to the new members.” Weaver also commented that the team “had a great fall training. This was a very motivated group who were fun to be around. The hard work ethic was infectious.” The team also had a very strong showing at Senior Nationals with returning 5th year Annie McColgan placing 12th and senior Finn Sweet placing 14th in the 20k classic mass start. These skiers are expected to continue being a force for the UVM team. Haley Brewster is another outstanding skier to watch this season as she won all but one carnival she started last season. She will return from racing on the World Cup and stated, “we have a fantastic new class of freshmen, and I’m really excited to get back to racing in the UVM suit with some new and old Cats!” She also commented that “a big goal for us is to keep everyone healthy and racing throughout the majority of the season,” which continues to challenge every team during the season. This group is likely to be a powerhouse on the circuit and will be exciting to watch.
Williams
The Ephs will be led by captains Molly Blakslee, Greta Laesch, Keelan Durham, and Quinn Wilson. The team is looking good heading into the season with a strong mix of new and returning skiers. Sophomore Bailey Carmack returns to the team, building on her great first-year for the Ephs. On the men’s team, Keelan Durham returns after multiple top five and ten finishes on the circuit last season. Junior Janne Koch returns from a strong 2024 season and is expected to continue to build on that. The team will be joined by first-years Piper Widmer, Olya Wright, Kiri May, Quinn McDermott, and Cole Bothner. The Ephs are excited for the season and as Molly Blaskslee put it to, “rock the cow!!”
As the season kicks off, the air buzzes with anticipation across the East. Skiers are preparing to head to Rumford, ME, waxing their skies and packing their bags. While some teams aim to defend their dominance and others look to make their mark, the excitement is palpable for both returning veterans and new competitors. As the season begins, be sure to follow along with live results from Bullitt Timing, EISA blog updates every race weekend, and on Instagram at @eisaskiing.
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