Sophomore Ashley George will again be one to watch for the Prior Lake Alpine ski teams.

The sophomore will be seeking a fourth straight state berth this season. She finished 11th at the state competition last year at Giants Ridge in Biwabik.

"Ashley has a ton of talent, but what makes her such a strong competitor is her work ethic and commitment to both ski racing and school as a 4.0 [grade-point average] student," Lakers coach Dave Everson said. "We are looking for her to win league races and be in the hunt for a conference individual championship.

"Ashley should be in the top 10 at state with a possibility of breaking into the top five," Everson added.

George finished 39th in her first state appearance as a seventh-grader and was 80th as an eighth-grader. She didn't complete her second run in her her second state race after a strong first run where she was in 20th place.

George led the Laker girls in the first race of this season Dec. 20 at Buck Hill in Burnsville, taking fourth overall with a combined time of 51.39 on her two runs.

The Lakers were seventh in the team standings with 264 points, while Lakeville North won (372).

The Prior Lake boys faired a little better, taking fifth with 235 points. Lakeville South won (402).

The boys squad was led by sophomore Josh Carlson in the first race. He was 15th with a combined time of 59.32 on his two runs.

Other finishes for the Prior Lake boys: senior Jordan Albright (22nd, 63.19), ninth-grader Sam Foltz (29th, 66.31), senior Jake Wolter (30th, 66.92), eighth-grader Charley Wroblewski (37th, 69.51), seventh-grader Braeden Deboer (45th, 74.09), sophomore Jackson Pettes (49th, 79.20), seventh-grader Riley Spieler (53rd, 84.22), ninth-grader Avi Neumann (56th, 87.08), seventh-grader Blake Stout (57th, 87.30), sophomore Rafe Walter (58th, 88.58) and ninth-grader Tyler Schaefer (62nd, 106.31).

On the girls side, senior Alexis Jacobson was in the top 20 for the Lakers, taking 19th (62.08).

Other finishes for the girls: ninth-grader Emma Gannon (27th, 66.02), junior Sophie Gannon (38th, 70.83), senior Amy McGann (42nd, 74.17), junior Lily Benko (48th, 79.81), sophomore Sofie Hansen (55th, 86.99), ninth-grader Abby Warmhoff (60th, 93.81), sophomore Daphne Adkins (61st, 94.55), junior Melissa Wyum (63rd, 97.95), senior Jessica Chacich (65th, 104.27) and ninth-grader Meg May (70th, 138.29).

"With some help from some of our newer racers, the girls should be near the top in the conference," Everson said. "After graduating 14 kids last year [combined from both teams], the most in the history of the team, we are rebuilding a bit, but we have some good young racers coming up."

Prior Lake is back on the slopes Jan. 10 at Buck Hill at 3:30 p.m.

The Section 6 race is set for Feb. 5 at Buck Hill, while the Alpine state competition will be held Feb. 13 at Giants Ridge.