University of Wisconsin Green Bay Athletics

Lilly Franzen Leads Phoenix in Successful Ariens Nordic CCSA Invite

1/24/2025 11:20:00 AM

BRILLION, Wis. – This past weekend the Green Bay Nordic Ski team hosted the second annual Ariens Nordic Invite at the Ariens Nordic Center in Brillion, Wis. The Phoenix had a very successful weekend, highlighted by big performances in the women's 15K Classic Individual Start on Saturday.

Green Bay was led by career-best finishes from Lilly Franzen, Silje Busklein, and Hedda Samuelsson. Franzen led the way for GB, crossing the finish line in 39:34.0 in seventh place (18th place was her previous best finish). Busklein and Samuelsson were not far behind, finishing in 11th (39:51.3) and 12th (40:02.6) place respectively. As a team, the Phoenix finished in third, beating out the College of St. Scholastica for the first time since 2011.

Franzen's seventh-place finish also brings her much closer to an NCAA Qualifying spot from the Central Collegiate Ski Association (CCSA). The top six student-athletes in the CCSA qualify for the NCAA Championships based on their top four finishes throughout the season. After this weekend, Franzen sits in seventh place in the qualifying rankings.

"I am really excited about the performance of the women's team," said Green Bay Nordic Ski Sam Myers. "I think this speaks to their year-round dedication and work ethic. It feels good to be meeting goals that were set in the fall. We still have a lot of the season left, so I am looking forward to what they can accomplish."

On the men's side of the 15K, the Phoenix was led by Ryan Thieme, who crossed the finish line in 34:06.6 for 14th place. A group of Green Bay skiers was not far behind, as Noah Erickson finished in 19th, Myles Brown finished 21st, Grant Rocheleau finished 22nd, CJ Young finished 23rd, Zaine Braaten finished 24th, and Sam Folland finished 25th.

Sunday was also a very successful day in the 4x5K Mixed Gender Relay. The Phoenix had a team finish fourth, once again ahead of CSS, while the other two GB teams finished ninth and 12th. The four Phoenix that made up the fourth-place team were Hedda Samuelsson, CJ Young, Lilly Franzen, and Ryan Thieme.

GB is off for a weekend before heading to the College of St. Scholastica CCSA Qualifier at Spirit Mountain in Duluth, Minn. on Feb. 1-2.

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---GreenBayPhoenix.com---

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