Buffs Finish Second At NCAA Ski Championships

Saturday, March 14

Midway, Utah

8:30 AM Women / 10:15 AM Men

Colorado

20K Freestyle (M) at Soldier Hollow

March 14, 2026 | Skiing

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Championship Was Less Than One Point Margin On Final Lap Of Last Race

By: Curtis Snyder, Associate AD/Athletic Communications

MIDWAY, Utah — The Colorado Buffaloes Ski Team saw the 2026 NCAA Skiing Championships come down to the final lap of the final race Saturday, but Utah Utes Ski Team pulled away late to claim the national title with the 20K freestyle races closing out the championship at Solider Hollow.

Colorado entered the final day with a 6.5-point lead, but Utah outscored the Buffs 70-56 in the women's 20K freestyle to take a 7.5-point advantage into the final race of the championships. The title then came down to the men's 20K freestyle finale, where the lead pack stayed together for nearly the entire race and the team scoring fluctuated wildly at every split.

At the final intermediate split at 17.5K, the championship margin was just a half point. On the final lap, Utah's Mons Melbye skied away for the race victory as the Utes outscored Colorado 71-68 in the race to secure the championship.

Utah finished with 549.5 points to Colorado's 539.5, a 10.5-point margin. Denver edged Montana State for third, 386.5-376.5.

The four-day championship battle between the two programs was among the tightest in NCAA history. The combined daily margins totaled just 32.5 points, the closest the championships have been contested in the coed era dating back to 1983. The 10.5-point final margin ranks as the fifth closest in the coed era and the second closest since 1998, trailing only Colorado's two-point win in 2024.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The women's 20K freestyle opened the final day with the Buffs holding a narrow lead in the team standings. Early splits showed just how volatile the race could be, with the championship margin swinging from Colorado ahead by as many as 24 points to trailing by as many as 15.

Alaska Fairbanks' Rosie Fordham broke away early and was never caught for the race win. The large chase group gradually shrank from roughly a dozen skiers to just five on the final lap, but none of the Buffs remained in that lead pack late.

Tilde Baangman led Colorado with a ninth-place finish to earn second-team All-America honors. Astri Lunde finished just outside All-America position in 11th while Selma Nevin battled to 17th.

Utah countered with Erica Laven finishing third and Witta Walcher fifth, allowing the Utes to outscore Colorado 70-56 and flip the overall standings.

The championship then came down to the men's 20K freestyle finale. The lead pack stayed together for most of the race, meaning the team scoring swings at each split could vary dramatically as skiers changed position within the group.

Colorado briefly regained the overall lead by 24.5 points at the 2.5K split before falling back by 12.5 points at 5K. The standings continued to seesaw throughout the race.

By the 17.5K split, the championship was separated by just half a point.

On the final lap, Mons Melbye broke free to win the race while Dartmouth's John Hagenbuch finished second. Colorado's Jakob Moch remained in the lead group and finished fourth to earn first-team All-America honors.

Johannes Flaaten finished 11th and Storm Pedersen 14th, but Utah secured the needed points with Zachary Jayne finishing ninth and Max Kluck placing 22nd to clinch the championship.

UP NEXT

The 2026 season is complete.

ALL-AMERICA NOTES

Colorado picked up two All-America honors on the final day and narrowly missed two more, finishing 11th in both races.
The Buffs finished the championships with 14 All-Americans, second only to Utah's 15. Colorado recorded eight first-team and six second-team honors.
Colorado led all teams with seven alpine All-Americans and also led the men's side with eight men's All-America honors overall.
Jakob Moch earned first-team honors in the men's 20K, giving him two All-America honors in his first NCAA Championships.
Tilde Baangman earned second-team honors in the women's race, giving her four All-America honors at Colorado and six overall in her collegiate career.

TEAM NOTES

Colorado finished second with 539.5 points, 10.5 behind Utah (549.5) and 152.5 ahead of third-place Denver (386.5).
The Buffs scored 68 points in the men's race and 56 in the women's race Saturday.
Colorado finished second in six of the eight races during the championships but slipped to fourth in the women's race and third in the men's race on the final day.
Colorado finished second in men's Nordic (149.5-144) and women's Nordic (158-131) to Utah.
The Buffs finished second in the Nordic combined standings (317.5-277) behind Utah but 69.5 points ahead of third-place Denver (207.5).

WOMEN'S NORDIC NOTES

Tilde Baangman finished ninth, her 12th finish in 13 races this season, all in the top 10 with 11 top-5 finishes and four wins.
In her Colorado career, Baangman finished 22 of 25 races, all in the top 10, with 19 top-5 finishes and 14 podiums including four wins.
Across her four-year collegiate career, she finished 46 of 50 races, with 44 top 10s, 32 top 5s and 25 podiums including eight wins.
Astri Lunde finished 11th, just missing All-America honors, her first finish outside the top eight this season. She finished all 10 races this year in the top 11, with nine top 10s and five top 5s including four podiums.
Through two seasons, Lunde has raced 20 times with 18 top 10s, 11 top 5s and seven podiums.
Selma Nevin finished 17th, giving her top-17 finishes in all 13 races this season. She recorded four top-10 finishes with one top-5 result in her first season at Colorado.
Across two collegiate seasons, she has finished 27 races all inside the top 20, including 16 top 10s and six top 5s with one podium.

MEN'S NORDIC NOTES

Jakob Moch finished fourth to earn first-team All-America honors and his second All-America award of the championships.
Despite a busy season with World Cup and Olympic travel, he raced seven times for Colorado and finished in the top four in five races with three podiums.
Storm Pedersen finished 14th, his 12th race of the season all inside the top 20. He recorded eight top-10 finishes, all of which were top five, including first-team All-America honors in the classic race.
Johannes Flaaten finished 11th, his 10th race of the season all inside the top 13, including eight top-10 finishes, three top fives and two podiums.

Team Standings: 1. Utah 549.5; 2. Colorado 539.5; 3. Denver 386.5; 4. Montana State 376.5; 5. Vermont 334; 6. Dartmouth 314; 7. Middlebury 254; 8. Alaska Anchorage 235; 9. New Hampshire 210.5; 10. Alaska Fairbanks 205.5; 11. Colby 114; 12. Nevada 107; 13. Northern Michigan 91; 14. Westminster 69; 15. Michigan Tech 62.5; 16. Harvard 32; 17. Bowdoin 26; 18. Boston College 20.5; 19. St. Lawrence 18.5; 20. St. Michael's 17; 21. Williams 14; 22. St. Scholastica 2.

Women's 20K Freestyle: 1. Rosie Fordham, Alaska Fairbanks, 51:54.6; 2. Haley Brewster, Vermont, 52:22.4; 3. Erica Laven, Utah, 52:22.7; 4. Ava Thurston, Dartmouth, 52:22.9; 5. Witta Walcher, Utah, 52:24.0; 6. Natalie Nicholas, New Hampshire, 52:29.7; 7. Emma Crum, Bowdoin, 52:56.1; 8. Hattie Barker, New Hampshire, 52:56.6; 9. Tilde Baangman, Colorado, 52:57.3; 10. Lena Poduska, Vermont, 52:59.0. Other Colorado: 11. Astri Lunde, 53:14.8; 17. Selma Nevin, 53:31.2.

Men's 20K Freestyle: 1. Mons Melbye, Utah, 46:14.6; 2. John Hagenbuch, Dartmouth, 46:15.0; 3. Tabor Greenberg, Vermont, 46:21.7; 4. Jakob Moch, Colorado, 46:21.8; 5. Ben Dohlby, Alaska Fairbanks, 46:22.0; 6. Corbin Carpenter, Alaska Anchorage, 46:22.7; 7. Philipp Moosmayer, Alaska Fairbanks, 46:23.9; 8. Simon Chappaz, Montana State, 46:25.3; 9. Zachary Jayne, Utah, 46:28.7; 10. Erling Bjoernstad, Alaska Anchorage, 46:43.7. Other Colorado: 11. Johannes Flaaten, 46:50.8; 14. Storm Pedersen, 46:54.2.