Ski Sharks place 2nd at national championships

Updated: Aug. 10, 10:30 a.m.

The Shawano Ski Sharks enjoyed a successful weekend on the water during the Division 2 Show Ski National Championships that Shawano hosted.

The Ski Sharks took second out of nine teams in the team competition and had several individuals shine as well.

Shawano accumulated 1,238.9 points for its second-place finish. Shermalot (Nekoosa) came in first with 1,364.57 points.

“Our team skied the cleanest show I’ve ever watched,” said Dave Passehl, the team’s president and host of the team’s show. “The crowd was so excited and cheering so loud that sometimes I could not even hear me announcing. So I just let them cheer and soaked it up. In my 32 years of show skiing, this is hands down the most memorable and electric moment ever for me!”

“Wow. It was incredibly special to put on the performance we did in front of our hometown crowd, with the added pressure of it being the D2 Nationals competition,” said show director Jaime Anday, who added that requests have been made already for Shawano to host the championships again. “Our entire team, skiing and non-skiing members, worked together to put on an entertaining show for the crowd. If we strive for having fun, entertaining the crowd and not worry about how we place in the competition, the results seem to just happen.”

The Ski Sharks had the top team scores in the doubles and tow boat categories.

Ski Sharks’ Ryan Strachan was also named the most valuable male of the championships.

“Receiving the most valuable male skier award was a huge honor because I’ve worked really hard on this team and on my own time to always improve my skills,” said Strachan, a 15-year-old. “I was excited to be recognized by my show director and the judges in a field of so many talented skiers. That shows that skiing can be done at any age level, and I hope that I can encourage kids to always work hard and try their best. I would like to thank my team for always supporting me and for all the fun memories.”

The Ski Sharks were the third team to put their show on the water Aug. 7, wrapping up before any rain fell. Many teams had to ski in the rain as the team competition wrapped up Aug. 8.

The individual portion of the championships took place Aug. 6.

There were a pair of Shawano duos competing in the strap doubles open division.

The team of Carsten McHugh and Jessa Jochman placed second with a score of 9.77 after two doubles teams posted identical first-place marks of 10.53.

“I think it means we tried our best, and there is nothing else wrong with what we did,” said Jochman of her doubles competition. “I thought it was really fun to ski where we practice, that way it feels like home.”

Brad Keuschel and Kylie Wallace came in fourth in strap doubles.

“Our run was a major bummer, and it was not our best by far,” said Wallace, a member of the Webfooters out of Fremont. “Next up for us is some fun practice, which is less tournament-driven and more focused on having fun and trying new things. We will see what happens in the upcoming off-season for summer 2022.”

Carsten McHugh also came in first in the freestyle jump open after being the only competitor in the event.

“Jump was so much fun,” said McHugh. “I just came off an injury with a fractured foot. I just got cleared Tuesday before nationals, with only being able to do very little tricks because of it. Being only able to practice three days before this competition was hard but ended in very good results.”

Faith McHugh also competed as an individual, finishing ninth in swivel.

“I learned from another swiveler, you don’t compete to win. You compete to beat your personal best,” said McHugh. “I am so grateful I was able to compete at my homesite where all my teammates and family could be there to support me. You can’t see their faces on the water, but I can definitely hear them cheering me on. When you hear your people cheering you on, it puts the biggest smile on your face, because no matter how you did you know they believe you had the best routine.”

Shawano shines in spotlight

Keuschel, a main proponent in bringing the national championships to Shawano, was thrilled with how the weekend went and heard plenty of positive reviews from fans and teams.

“I would like to thank everyone who came out for our show or any of the shows this weekend,” said Keuschel. “During our show, there were well over 1,000 people on site and you could feel the home town excitement in the air. Our team skies the absolute best show that we have skied all year and I truly believe that was aided by wanting to put on a great show for our hometown friends and families on a national stage. The crowd was in to the show the entire time and our skiers feed off of that energy.”

Keuschel thanked the Shawano community and several departments for helping the Ski Sharks welcome opposing teams to town. He added that individuals in town for the event could also be found at local establishments following action on the water.

“Our phones, emails, and social media pages have been blowing up with praises for our town, our team, and our ski site,” said Keuschel. “It warms our hearts to be able to show everyone what we already know. They are extremely jealous and impressed by the support that our community offers for us.”

“This event was a huge undertaking and our team stepped up to the challenge and hosted the largest Division 2 tournament ever,” said Passehl. “We are proud to have hosted this in our very own hometown! There was not a hotel room available, restaurants were full, and I’m told that Main Street was just full of people!”

Like Passehl, Keuschel said he has never been more proud in his 25-year water skiing career than he was this weekend.

“We made a big impact this weekend and our whole team and community should be proud,” said Keuschel, who added that the livestream of the championships were being broadcast to over 30 countries and had 30,000-plus viewers at any given time.

Full results from the national championships can be found at https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Water-Ski/News/2021/August/04/Shermalot-Wins.... More photos from the championships can be found in the photo gallery section of www.newmedia-wi.com.

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