BENNINGTON, Vt. -- Bates' men's and women's Nordic ski teams both took sixth place in the 3x5K freestyle relay races Friday on the first day of the Williams Carnival at Prospect Mountain.

Bates' top women's relay team, comprising junior Hallie Grossman (South Woodstock, Vt.), sophomore Jane McLarney (Lowell, Mass.) and first-year Sadie James (Avon, Maine), came in sixth place in 37:34.6, just 6.1 seconds behind fifth-place Colby, out of 20 entries.

The Bates men's top trio comprised senior Alex Hamilton (Truckee, Calif.), first-year Max Millslagle (Bend, Ore.) and junior Connor Regan (Cumberland, Maine). Millslagle's fast middle leg of 10:04.3 helped the Bobcats fend off seventh-place Colby by 2.9 seconds, 30:53.8 to 30:56.7.

Halfway through the Williams Carnival, Bates' Nordic and alpine ski teams combined are tied with Harvard for seventh place among 15 competing teams, with 205 carnival points. The carnival resumes Saturday with women's 5K and men's 10K classic races.