Soldotna skier Sadie Fox fell just shy of a finals berth in Wednesday’s junior division freestyle sprint race at the U.S. SuperTour Finals at Birch Hill ski area in Fairbanks.
Fox, a University of Alaska Anchorage sophomore, broke from the start line with the lead, but ultimately finished fourth in her semifinal heat of the skate sprint, finishing 1.93 seconds behind heat winner Jenna DiFolco with a time of 4 minutes, 14.38 seconds.
The 2015 Soldotna graduate originally qualified into the heat races with the fourth-fastest time among Under-20 female racers and 37th fastest overall.
UAA teammate Hannah Rudd won the female junior race. In the female senior sprints, Stratton Mountain School and U.S. Ski Team racer Jessica Diggins won with fellow U.S. Ski Team member and Anchorage phenom Kikkan Randall second, 2.39 seconds behind. Third-place Erika Flowers of Stratton was a whopping 15.65 seconds behind.
Alaska Pacific University’s Hunter Wonders won the male junior sprint over UAA and former Fairbanks skier Max Donaldson, while another former Fairbanks skier and current APU racer Logan Hanneman won the male senior sprint.
