SUN VALLEY, Idaho -- Senior Andrew Klem (Dalton, MA) of the Clarkson University Nordic Ski team paced the field of 30 competitors at the USCSA Nationals, claiming the 8.5 kilometer Classic race Wednesday afternoon.

The Golden Knights performed well overall, with skiers from the men's team placing in the top 10, while two women finished in the top 20 of the 8.5K Classic race.

Klem finished the 8.5K race with a time of 23 minutes, 58.6 seconds, leading the entire field by more than 20 full seconds. Next among the Clarkson skiers to cross the finish line was sophomore Adam Merkwan (Meredith, NH), coming in seventh place in 25:11.3.

The Golden Knights had the next two finishers as well in junior Nick Marshall (Huntington, VT) and freshman Eric Mallery (Webster, NY), with Marshall placing four seconds behind Merkwan and Mallery another 28 seconds behind his teammate. Senior Zach Russo (Fayston, VT) took 17th in 27:08.4.

The women were quite as successful as the men, but still performed well in their own 8.5K Classic event. Sophomore Olivia Dawson (Scottsville, NY) was the top finisher for the Golden Knights, coming in 10th overall in 34:56.3.

Freshman Ashley Forshey (Scotia, NY) claimed the 19th spot at the event in 41:17.7, while juniors Erin Corrigan (Remsen, NY) and Eleanor Vane (Fairport, NY) came in 23rd and 27th, respectively. Sophomore Taryn Dausman (Syracuse, NY), one of Clarkson's top performers this season, was unable to complete the race.