The Panther Nordic ski team kicked off the 98th annual Middlebury Carnival, competing in the classic events at the Rikert Nordic Center on Friday afternoon. The squad sits in second place with 219 points, while the University of Vermont is first with 271 points. The Panthers are back in action on Saturday with the women's 15K skate mass start at 10:00 a.m. followed by the men's 20K skate mass start at 11:30 a.m. The event today served as Senior Day, as the team honored Avery Ellis and Peter Wolter. 
 
Charlotte Ogden led the women's squad, placing fourth with a clocking of 13:53.00 in the 5K classic. Ellis finished in eighth with a time of 14:07.3, while Quincy Massey-Bierman rounded out the scorers with a 19th place performance (14:32.7). 
 
On the men's side, Wolter earned runner-up honors, clocking in at 24:04.6 in the 10K classic. Willson Moore placed sixth with a time of 24:55.4. Sam Hodges rounded out the scorers with an eighth-place finish (25:02.1), while William Nemeth was right behind in ninth with a time of 25:04.6. 
 
Due to weather, the alpine competition on Friday was canceled, but the Panthers will resume action at the Snow Bowl on Saturday morning with the giant slalom.