First-place finisher Linnea Ousdigian, a sophomore from Mounds View, had the course to herself at the start of the classic portion of the girls Nordic pursuit race at Giants Ridge in Biwabik. (Jeff Wheeler/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Last year’s champions are this year’s champions in Minnesota high school Nordic skiing.

Two sophomores, Logan Drevlow of Hopkins and Linnea Ousdigian of Mounds View, successfully defended the boys and girls Nordic pursuit state titles they won as freshman, taking dominant victories Thursday at Giants Ridge in Biwabik.

Pressure was different this time around, but not everything had changed. It was Ousdigian’s third time competing in the state meet, and she found this year’s victory just as special as her first, she said. She was especially excited about the course that was used.

“I was excited for it to be on this course because there are more hills and one big lap instead of multiple laps,” Ousdigian said.

Drevlow said the course was an advantage for him. His coach, Brett Schulze, understands why.

“He loves challenges,” Schulze said. “He embraces challenges. He embraces hills. It works for him because he trains hard for the terrain.”

Drevlow turned that advantage into a lead of 40 seconds after the first race. He had extended the lead to nearly 50 seconds when he crossed the finish line for a total time of 27:59.3.

“It was my goal to get [a] 25 to 30-second [lead],” Drevlow said. “So, 40 seconds was like, ‘Whoa.’ I was really proud of that. And it’s nice to have a buffer going into the second race if I break a pole or something, I should have enough of a gap to get another pole from a coach or if something bad happens.”

Ousdigian and Drevlow also were honored as All-Metro Nordic Skiers of the Year by the Star Tribune last season.

Ousdigian had a 27-second lead after the freestyle portion of the race, but Proctor/Hermantown’s Della Bettendorf made up 12 seconds in the final stretch of the classical race. Ousdigian did not know Bettendorf was making up ground. She did not want to know.

“I was just trying to pace myself and not fall or break any equipment,” Ousdigian said. “I don’t think that would have helped me at all.”

Ousdigian finished with a total time of 32:24.4. Bettendorf finished second in 32:39.3 and Wayzata’s Lila Golomb came in third with a time of 33:09.7. Golomb had the lowest time in the classic portion.

Minneapolis Washburn won the girls team trophy with 363 points. Chloe Angerman (fifth place in pursuit), Ciara Thatcher (eighth) and Nell Gardner and Eve Gardner (sixth in the team sprint) finished in the top 10 for the Millers.

Bloomington Jefferson/Kennedy’s Anders Westanmo finished second in the boys race with a total time of 28:49.1. Eddie Snider climbed from fifth after the freestyle race to third place with a race-best classic time of 14:00.4. His total time was six-tenths of a second behind Westanmo’s.

Wayzata won the boys’ team trophy with 370 points. Hudson McMillan (fifth place in the pursuit) and James Caine and Connor Viera (fourth in team sprint) placed in the top 10 of their races for the Trojans.