The Mt. Greylock Girls’ Nordic Ski team finished their impressive undefeated season by winning their second straight state title. Freshman Helen Greenfield led the charge coming in fourth place in the race. Sophomores Margo Smith and Brandi Gill finished 6th and 12th respectively, and senior Niku Darafshi finished 13th giving the Mounties a staggering 31 points, securing a win against runner-up Acton Boxborough who ended with 56 points. Coming in third was Lenox with 64 points led by senior Alice Huth.

Nobody on the team anticipated Greenfield to do as well as she did at states. Although everyone knew that Greenfield was an exceptionally talented skier, a fourth place finish was certainly unexpected. About Greenfield’s impressive state performance, junior Emma Polumbo said, “Helen’s fourth place finish was a very pleasant surprise. She normally was behind our top 4 skiers this season (Margo Smith, Brandi Gill, Niku Darafshi, and Emma Polumbo), but we knew that she was an extremely strong skier and we were more technical skiers, so her strong performance in the race was not completely unexpected, but we did not expect fourth place.”

This year, states was held at Prospect Mountain. Both the Mt. Greylock Boys’ and Girls’ Nordic Ski teams have a special relationship with this mountain because they often have their practices held there. Winning a state title at Prospect likely felt extra special for the teams.

The Mt. Greylock Girls’ Nordic Ski team’s success seems to have only just begun. The only skier who will graduate next year is Darafshi. Although this will be a significant loss for the girls, they should be able to come back from it with ease. With the exceptionally talented younger skiers coming back next year, another state title win for the girls seems to be on the horizon.