HANOVER, N.H. – The Nordic Colorado Buffaloes wrapped up an intense weekend at the NCAA Ski Championships with a second-place team finish, scoring 513 points.
They narrowly beat host Dartmouth, who had 508 points. Despite entering the final day in a tight battle with Utah and Dartmouth, the Buffs couldn’t overcome the Utes, who dominated both Nordic races to steal the title with 590 points.
CU held a slight edge over Dartmouth heading into the final races, leading 382-380. The men’s 20K freestyle saw Dartmouth pull ahead after outscoring the Buffs 76-59, but the women’s team came through. Tilde Baangman led the charge, finishing third and earning first-team All-America honors, while Astri Lunde placed eighth. Hanna Abrahamsson capped off her college career with a strong 16th-place finish, helping the Buffs reclaim second place.
On the men’s side, Johannes Flaaten was CU’s top finisher in eighth, earning second-team All-America honors. Will Koch, recovering from illness, finished 11th, just missing his eighth career All-America award. Hugo Hinckfuss placed 15th, rounding out the Buffs’ scoring efforts.
Over on the Alpine side, there were some notable performances from the racers, adding to the Buffs’ spot on the podium. It was a series of highs and lows for the Buffs, but they walked away as the top alpine team, racking up 268 points across four races.
Filip Wahlqvist came through in the men’s giant slalom, throwing down the third-fastest first run. He held onto that spot after his second run, securing a podium finish and his second first-team All-America honor of the week. Etienne Mazellier battled his way up to seventh place, earning second-team All-America honors, while Louis Fausa shook off a rough first run after losing a pole to finish 11th, just 0.13 seconds away from All-America status.
The women’s race didn’t have as much momentum after Magdalena Luczak suffered a bad fall that ended her day. She was taken off the hill with her right leg in a brace for further evaluation. Despite the setback, Louison Accambray made a big second-run push, jumping from 21st to ninth to earn second-team All-America honors. Ashley Campbell also had a solid day, finishing 12th after a strong opening run.
Unfortunately, Utah took control of the overall team rankings after winning both giant slalom races. The Buffs and Big Green were locked in a tight battle for second place, with CU holding onto a narrow 382-380 edge going into the final day of competition.
This marks CU’s third consecutive top-two finish at the NCAA Championships, following a runner-up spot in 2023 and a national title in 2024. The Buffs ended the season with 12 All-America honors, consistently proving themselves among the nation’s best collegiate ski programs.
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