By Barbara O’Connor & Kyla Templeton
[Photos: Lewie Lewis]
Arkansas NICA’s inaugural race finished off with our first State Championship Race, Hustle in the Hollow, that was held at Slaughter Pen in Bentonville, AR Sunday, November 13th. And a hustle it was! The race course was gnarly with a challenging climb up to the highest trail in Slaughter Pen phase 1, with terrain that included wooded single-track trails. There was also a special “Experience NICA” 3 person fun relay race for parents, coaches, friends, and visitors who got a taste of what racing in a NICA race is all about.
Our state championship was the crown jewel to a week of all-things-mountain-biking including the 2016 IMBA World Summit held in Bentonville. Mountain bike and trials star Danny MacAskill thrilled the riders and spectators as he signed autographs and kicked off several of the Arkansas NICA races. Other special visitors included Austin McInerny (NICA Executive Director), Lauren Duensing (Programs Director), as well as Bruce Martens (Coach & Licensing Manager). And there were two mountain bike hall of fame members in attendance, Nat Ross and Gary Sjoquist!
Student-athletes, coaches, parents alike have had a dream season. Coach Lewie Lewis from the Arkansas Arts Academy said about this season, “I’ve been inspired by the perseverance, can-do attitude, and ability to not make small obstacles larger than they are. Biking is very much like life some days your railing the trail and some days you are struggling but if you keep battling, pushing and never give up you will make it to the finish line.”
Girls Wave
All three of our high school girls series leaders had fantastic races and maintained their leads to win the series overall! Congratulations to Angela Wurzer from BHS, Cate Mertins from Haas Hall Academy, and Jordan Sauls from Bentonville West!
In the middle school girls divisions, Ryleigh Reddell from Lincoln Junior High, clinched her fourth race of the season, and Lauren Adams, also from Lincoln, won her third race of the series.
Results
6th/7th Grade Girls
1 RYLEIGH REDDELL Lincoln Junior High School
2 MACKENZIE CHAVEZ Poteau Public Schools
3 EMMA JOHNSON RazorbaCX Little Rock
4 KATHRYN KELLEY Rogers Composite
5 EMMA HAMBY Arkansas Arts Academy
8th Grade Girls
1 LAUREN ADAMS Lincoln Junior High School
2 AVERY ESCAJEDA Pea Ridge High School
3 ELLA VANHORN Fayetteville Cycling
4 RACHEL ARNOLD Fayetteville Cycling
5 MONICA SANCHEZ-FLORES Fayetteville Cycling
9th Grade Girls
1 JORDAN SAULS, Bentonville West High School
10th Grade Girls
1 CATE MERTINS, Haas Hall Academy
JV Girls
1 ANGELA WURZER, Bentonville High School
9th Grade Girls Series
1 JORDAN SAULS, Bentonville West High School
10th Grade Girls Series
1 CATE MERTINS, Haas Hall Academy
JV Girls Series
1 ANGELA WURZER, Bentonville High School
Middle School Boys Wave
The race was a nail biter for the 6th and 7th grade boys, the biggest field in the league this year. Bryston Smith pulled out the victory on his home course and had his teammates Charlie Carter and Neyland Robinson on the podium with him.
We do not award a series winner for middle school categories because we know many of the student athletes that are racing in the Arkansas NICA league also do other sports, such as cross country and football. We want them to be able to participate in a variety of sports and not have the pressure of a series winner to force them to make choices about which sport they are prioritizing.
Results
6th/7th Grade Boys
1 BRYSTON SMITH Lincoln Junior High
2 GAGE ELLIS Poteau Public Schools
3 CHARLIE CARTER Lincoln Junior High
4 STIHL SNYDER Poteau Public Schools
5 NEYLAND ROBINSON Lincoln Junior High
8th Grade Boys
1 ELY SEAY Lincoln Junior High
2 PARKER CANTRELL Lincoln Junior High
3 WES THOMPSON RazorbaCX Little Rock Composite
4 SEBASTIAN BERRYMAN Independent
5 LANDON DOTY Springdale Har-Ber High
High School Boys Wave
Austin Morris won his fourth and final race as a varsity boys rider, winning both the state championship and the series overall! We have had a great group of varsity student athletes to lead out our inaugural year.
Lenny Tellez won his fourth race of the season and the series title in the JV boys category. Jackson Newman finished off the sophomore boys season with a win in the race and a win overall for the series. The freshman boys race was hard fought with Jacob Smithpeters from Haas Hall beating out Lucas Byrne for the last race of the season, but Lucas won the series title with two first place finishes for the season.
Results
9th Grade Boys
1 JACOB SMITHPETERS Haas Hall Academy
2 LUCAS BYRNE Northwest Arkansas Classical
3 KENTON ROBERTS Haas Hall Academy
4 JOEL BOUMA Rogers Composite
5 CARTER WILLIAMS Pea Ridge High School
10th Grade Boys
1 JACKSON NEWMAN Independent
2 CARTER FERGUSON Bentonville High School
3 SAMUEL GUREL Haas Hall Academy
4 CARSON LONGMATE Bentonville High School
5 AIDAN PARKS Bentonville High School
JV Boys
1 LENNY TELLEZ Fayetteville Cycling
2 GRANT LAMPSON Rogers Composite
3 JORDAN SEAY Bentonville High School
4 RYAN REDDELL Bentonville West High School
5 JACOB VELLIQUETTE Springdale Har-Ber High School
Varsity Boys
1 AUSTIN MORRIS Independent
2 COLE ANDERSON Bentonville High School
3 CONNOR PHILLIPS Bentonville High School
4 GLENDON VANSANDT Independent
5 KADE KORTE Bentonville High School
9th Grade Boys Series Overall
1 LUCAS BYRNE Northwest Arkansas Classical Academy
2 JACOB SMITHPETERS Haas Hall Academy
3 KENTON ROBERTS Haas Hall Academy
3 HENRY WIGINTON Northwest Arkansas Classical Academy
5 CARTER WILLIAMS Pea Ridge High School
10th Grade Boys Series Overall
1 JACKSON NEWMAN Independent
2 CARSON LONGMATE Bentonville High School
3 CARTER FERGUSON Bentonville High School
4 LANDON FREEMAN Springdale Har-ber High School
5 AIDAN PARKS Bentonville High School
JV Boys Series Overall
1 LENNY TELLEZ Fayetteville Cycling
2 GRANT LAMPSON Rogers Composite
3 TOM OLSON Bentonville High School
4 RYAN REDDELL Bentonville West High School
5 JORDAN SEAY Bentonville High School
Varsity Boys Series Overall
1 AUSTIN MORRIS Independent
2 COLE ANDERSON Bentonville High School
3 CONNOR PHILLIPS Bentonville High School
4 KADE KORTE Bentonville High School
5 GLENDON VANSANDT Independent
Team Results
Hustle in the Hollow State Championship
First Place Team Bentonville High School
Second Place Team Haas Hall Academy
Third Place Team Bentonville West High School
Series Overall
First Place Team Bentonville High School
Second Place Team Haas Hall Academy
Third Place Team Bentonville West High School
Fourth Place Team Springdale Har-ber High School
Fifth Place Team Pea Ridge High School
Full results can be found here.
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