Olympic Sports

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Olympic Sports

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May 14th – Game Day!

… Citius, Altius, Fortius … 

Heartbreak! Buffs fall on the road to No. 1 Northwestern, 12-11, in double-overtime

From CUBuffs.com … The Colorado Buffaloes’ historic postseason run came to a heartbreaking end Thursday night as No. 2 Northwestern edged CU 13-12 in double overtime in the NCAA Women’s Lacrosse Tournament Quarterfinals at Martin Stadium.

Colorado (16-4) erased a late one-goal deficit in regulation when Maddie Shoup scored with just four seconds remaining to force overtime, but Northwestern’s Noel Cumberland converted a free-position shot 1:43 into the second overtime period to send the Wildcats (18-2) to the NCAA Final Four.

The ending came amid controversy after officials reviewed a dangerous follow-through on a Madison Taylor shot attempt with 2:00 remaining in the second overtime. The review upheld the no-call despite video replay appearing to show contact to the head of a Colorado defender, allowing Northwestern to retain possession and earn the decisive free-position opportunity, which would have been wipped out if the call came out differently.

Despite the loss, Colorado completed the deepest NCAA Tournament run in program history while tying the 2017 Buffaloes for the most wins in a season in school history. The Buffs also claimed the program’s first Big 12 Tournament championship and earned the highest-ranked win in program history earlier this season with a victory at then-No. 2 Northwestern in the season opener.

“I’m proud of my team for the fight,” said head coach Ann Elliott Whidden. “There were times we could have given up or not come out confident, and I’m proud of our ability to even get the game into overtime there. We were just one play short.”

Shoup led Colorado offensively with four goals and four assists, while Teagan Ryan added four goals, including three in the opening quarter. Rowan Edson chipped in two goals and two assists and goalkeeper Elena Oh came up with several critical saves late, including multiple stops in overtime to keep the Buffaloes alive. Madison Taylor led Northwestern with four goals and two assists.

Colorado led for more than 40 minutes and twice built three-goal advantages against one of the nation’s premier programs before the Wildcats rallied late. The Buffaloes also fell for the first time all season when scoring at least 10 goals, entering the night 13-0 in such games.

“I’m so proud of this group from the beginning of the season to the end,” Whidden said. “We’ve had some tough moments and ups and downs, but this group learned from those moments, worked hard and believed in themselves. That’s why we got to this point.”

… Continue reading story here …

Notes … Colorado advanced to the NCAA Quarterfinals for the first time in program history … The Buffaloes tied the 2017 team for the most wins in a season in program history with 16 … CU finished the season having won nine of its final 10 games … Colorado captured the first Big 12 Tournament championship in program history earlier this month … The Buffaloes earned victories this season over both No. 2 Northwestern and No. 4 Florida … Shoup’s four-goal performance marked her ninth hat trick of the season … Ryan recorded the fourth four-goal game of her career and extended her goal streak to 10 straight games … Colorado scored four extra-man goals in the contest.

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Elite Eight: CU seek second win v. No. 1 seed Northwestern

From CUBuffs.com … Colorado and Northwestern will meet on Thursday for the second time during the 2026 season. The Buffaloes and Wildcats opened the season against each other in February and will now play for a shot at the Final Four.

The 2026 season started on Feb. 9 with the Buffs traveling to Evanston to take on then No. 2 Northwestern. The game resulted in a 10-9 upset victory for the Buffs, and 94 days later, the two sides will meet again with everything on the line.

Colorado (16-3) could add another ‘first’ to the number of records broken this season. This group is the first to reach the NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals. A win on Thursday and the Buffs will continue to be in uncharted territory.

The No. 8-seeded Buffs have continued to raise the bar this season. With the victory over Denver in the second round, Colorado tied the single-season record for wins with 16, set once before in 2017.

Colorado has been led so far in the tournament by Teagan Ryan and Maddie Shoup offensively, with both scoring five goals in the two games last week. Rachel Kennedy has dished out four assists, the eighth most in the tournament, to go along with three goals against Denver in the second round.

Northwestern (16-3) won the Big 10 Conference tournament championship and is the No. 1 seed in the tournament. The Wildcats, after receiving a bye in the first round, beat James Madison 17-5 to advance to the quarterfinals.

The Wildcats are led by senior attacker Madison Taylor, who is second in the nation with 88 goals and third with 119 points this season. On the other end of the field, graduate goalkeeper Jenika Cuocco is fourth in the country with a .519 save percentage.

Thursday’s winner will advance to take on either Johns Hopkins or Stony Brook on May 22 in the Final Four.

Thursday’s first draw is set for 12:30 p.m. MDT on ESPNU.

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May 10th – Game Day!

… Citius, Altius, Fortius … 

Buffs advance to the NCAA Quarterfinals with an 11-9 comeback win over Denver

From CUBuffs.com … The Colorado Buffaloes’ (16-3) dream season marches on after an 11-9 win over the Denver Pioneers (16-4) in an all-Centennial State showdown in the NCAA Tournament Second Round Sunday afternoon at Prentup Field in Boulder. The win gives CU its first berth in the NCAA Women’s Lacrosse Tournament Quarterfinals in program history.

The game was a re-match of the two teams’ tilt on April 15 in Denver, when Colorado earned a 9-6 victory and like in that game, the Buffs were led by chief Pios pulverizer Rachel Kennedy. The junior, who had five goals in the previous game against Denver, added three more and an assist to lead all players with four points.  After vanquishing Jacksonville in comeback fashion 10-9 on Friday, who Colorado also defeated earlier in the season, the Buffs head into the next round having won nine straight games, their second-longest winning streak in history. The win also closes the book on a perfect home season, with the Buffaloes finishing 9-0 in games played in Boulder while racking up a record number of home wins.

“We knew it was going to be a battle,” said head coach Ann Elliott Whidden. “A little bit of a tough start for us, but similar to Friday I’m just proud of our team for sticking with it, believing and just going one play at a time to get ourselves back in. I thought we played some really controlled poised lacrosse down the end, especially in the offensive end in our ability to execute. This is an awesome moment for us, just to be able to be going to the next round and back to Northwestern where we started the season.”

Colorado found itself down 4-1 early and had to dig out of a three-goal deficit, its largest comeback of the season, before erupting for five goals in the second quarter, which proved to be the difference. The comeback was keyed by Kennedy, who had two goals in the second to tie the game at 5-5 and then give Colorado a lead they would not relinquish.

“The past few years when the momentum has shifted to the other team we’ve had a hard time coming back but this year we’ve found ways to shift that momentum and that’s where we’ve found some pretty successful moments especially today,” said Lily Assini. “Being down early, we knew that we could still get the job done and there was a lot of the game left. Just having that faith in ourselves and knowing that no matter what they’re doing just focusing on our gameplan and knowing eventually it’s going to turn out.”

… Continue reading story here …

Up Next … Having already prevailed in two rematches this tournament, the Buffaloes will get one more as they travel to Northwestern for their first-ever NCAA Quarterfinal match-up. Colorado kicked off the 2026 season by beating the Wildcats, who were ranked #2 at the time, 10-9 on Feb. 9. The game will be played at Northwestern’s Martin Stadium on May 14 and will be broadcast on ESPNU. Game time is still to be announced.

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May 9th

… Citius, Altius, Fortius … 

Preview: No. 8 CU Lacrosse v. Denver (1:00 p.m., MT, ESPN+)

From the Daily Camera … Sunday’s contest (1:00 p.m., MT, ESPN+) will be the first postseason pairing between the Buffs and Pioneers, and it’s matchup that could shape up to be a slugfest between two of the premier defenses in the nation.

The Buffs began the NCAA Tournament boasting the nation’s top scoring defense, allowing an average of 6.35 goals per game. DU wasn’t far behind, ranking second with 6.61 goals allowed per game. The Pioneers turned in a strong defensive performance in their opening-round win against Florida, holding the Gators to just four goals over the final 46 minutes, 7 seconds in a 16-8 victory.

The Pioneers matched a season-low scoring total when the teams met on April 15, with the Buffs posting a 9-6 win at Denver. DU hasn’t lost since, winning five games in a row that included a championship run through the Big East tournament. The Buffs have won eight consecutive games, the second-longest winning streak in team history, and they have held all 19 of their opponents to single-digit goal totals.

CU’s Rachel Kennedy scored a career-high five goals during the Buffs’ win at DU last month. Caroline Keil and Eva Thomsen-Marr scored two goals apiece for the Pioneers.

“With Denver, we think of the two teams, especially this year, a defensive matchup,” CU head coach Ann Elliott Whidden said. “A defensive matchup with two teams that are going to grind it out on that end. Again, possession will be huge.

“For us, I think it’s just the joy of this moment. It’s been a while since we’ve been here. We’re just excited to get to play again. I think we’ve learned a lot from (Jacksonville) how we have to step on to the field. And what an opportunity for this team to get to play another game.”

… Read full story here …

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May 8th – Game Day!

… Citius, Altius, Fortius …

Buffs outlast Jacksonville, 10-9, to advance to Sweet Sixteen of NCAA tournament

… Buffs will play the winner of the Florida/Denver (7:00 p.m., MT, ESPN+), at 1:00 p.m., MT, Sunday, 1:00 p.m., MT, ESPN+ … 

From the Daily Camera … The Buffaloes are moving on.

The Colorado women’s lacrosse team rallied past Jacksonville, shaking off a rough third quarter to top the Dolphins 10-9 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday at Prentup Field.

The Buffaloes (15-3) extended the second-longest winning streak in team history to eight games while securing a spot in the second round Sunday afternoon against either Denver or Florida, which were set to square off in the second first-round game at Prentup on Friday.

CU endured a scoreless streak of nearly 24 minutes that stretched from the middle of the second quarter into the early minutes of the fourth quarter, a stretch that saw Jacksonville erase a three-goal Buffs’ lead to take an 8-6 lead early in the fourth.

The Buffs responded with three consecutive goals, first from Maddie Shoup and then a pair from Teagan Ryan, before Jacksonville pulled even at 9-9 on a goal from Shae Hagans with 9 minutes, 51 seconds left. But CU’s Rowan Edson, who scored the overtime winner during the Buffs’ regular season win at Jacksonville, converted a shot off an assist from Molly Reed with 6:06 remaining to give Colorado its final lead.

CU held Jacksonville scoreless the rest of the way to maintain its streak of holding every opponent this season to a single-digit goal total.

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No. 8 seed CU facing rematch with Jacksonville (4:00 p.m., MT, ESPN+) in NCAA tournament opener

From CUBuffs.com … Colorado gets the NCAA Tournament underway Friday afternoon at Prentup Field, taking on Atlantic Sun champions Jacksonville in a rematch from earlier this season.

Colorado (14-3) has had a season for the record books in 2026. The Buffaloes have won the second-most games in a single season in program history, culminating with the first conference tournament championship last week, winning the Big 12 title.

The Buffs enter the tournament as the No. 8 seed, marking the first time Colorado has been seeded and will host the first two rounds. The 2026 appearance will be CU’s fourth trip to the NCAA Tournament but the first since going three straight seasons from 2017-19. Colorado is 2-3 all-time in the NCAA Tournament, winning a game in both of the last two appearances.

This will be a rematch against Jacksonville in more ways than one. In 2018, the Buffs earned their first NCAA Tournament win against the Dolphins 23-18 in Gainesville, Fla. The two teams did not face off again until this season when Colorado beat Jacksonville 10-9 in overtime on the road one month ago on April 6.

“We did already play Jacksonville this season, but I think we’re really looking forward to that battle,” senior Maddie Shoup said. “We are all excited, and I think we’re ready to compete and get far in this tournament.”

Jacksonville (13-5) won the ASUN Conference tournament championship last Saturday, defeating Delaware 16-11 in the final. The Dolphins led their conference and are 11th in the country, scoring 14.83 goals per game. The previous matchup against the Buffs was the only game this season in which the team scored below 10 goals. Jacksonville controls possession, led by senior Abby Moran, who leads the conference and is 5th in the nation with 10.44 draw controls per game.

The Buffs’ last game at home was a 19-5 Senior Day victory over Arizona State on April 25. The win in the regular season finale was the team’s seventh at home this season and kept the Buffs unbeaten (7-0) on their home turf in the regular season for the fourth time in CU history and the first in a full season since 2018.

Friday’s first draw is set for 4 p.m. MT. Brad Thompson will have the call on ESPN+.

Tickets for the Buffs’ first-round game are on sale and are available exclusively here.

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May 4th

… Citius, Altius, Fortius … 

CU to host first two rounds of the NCAA Lacrosse Tournament 

From CUBuffs.com … Colorado lacrosse is set to host the first and second round of the NCAA Tournament this weekend beginning on Friday May 8 at Prentup Field, with tickets on sale now.

After winning the Big 12 Tournament last weekend, Colorado earned its highest seed in program history and is hosting an NCAA Tournament game for the first time. The Buffs will face off against Jacksonville on Friday at 4 p.m. MT in a rematch from earlier in the season. Following that game at 7 p.m. MT in-state rival Denver will play conference foe Florida. The winners will play on Sunday at 1 p.m. at Prentup Field with a trip to the quarterfinals on the line.

Tickets to Friday’s games will be $15 and a ticket will include both games.  Fans will also be able to purchase an all-session ticket for $25, which includes Friday’s games and the second round on Sunday.  Everything will be general admission.

You can purchase tickets for this weekends games here.

For more information on Colorado Lacrosse, please visit cubuffs.com/wlax. Fans of the Buffs can follow @cubuffswlax on Instagram, X, TikTok, and Facebook.

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May 2nd

… Citius, Altius, Fortius …

No. 10 CU women’s Lacrosse upsets No. 4 Florida, 8-6, to win first Big 12 Championship 

From the Daily Camera … A magical season now includes the first conference tournament championship in program history.

A Colorado women’s lacrosse team already stellar on defense turned in arguably its top defensive performance of the season Saturday, putting the clamps on one of the top offenses in the nation while claiming the Big 12 Conference tournament championship with an 8-6 win at No. 4 Florida.

The 14th-ranked Buffs already were assured of an NCAA Tournament bid, but Saturday’s victory gives CU an automatic berth in the 29-team field and gives CU an opportunity to potentially host when the tournament starts next week. The Buffs were ranked 10th in the most recent Division I Committee’s top 10 and owned a No. 10 mark in the RPI before defeating the Gators on their home turf.

The top eight seeds get to host, and the NCAA Tournament field will be announced Sunday night. CU (14-3) posted its seventh consecutive win and erased an 0-6 mark all-time against Florida. The Buffs improved to 4-3 against ranked foes this season, playing all seven of those games on the road.

“I’m just so proud of this team,” CU head coach Ann Elliott Whidden said in a press release. “We started off the season with a big win at Northwestern, and we were excited, but partway through the season, I felt like we were still stuck in that moment and not creating new memories. I’m proud of this team for the last third of the season, just battling, showing up, continuing to push each other, and really proud of how we came out today.”

The Gators entered the match with the fourth-ranked scoring offense in the nation, while the Buffs boasted the nation’s top scoring defense. It was CU’s defense that dominated the strength-against-strength matchup, holding the Gators to a season-low scoring total for the second time this season while limiting Florida to just nine shots on goal. Buffs goalie Elena Oh, the Big 12 Goalkeeper of the Year, finished with seven saves.

CU’s Maddie Shoup scored four goals for the third time in four games to pace the Buffs’ offense, while freshman Rowan Edson added a pair of goals.

Florida led 2-1 at the end of the first quarter, but CU held a Gators team that had been averaging 16.2 goals per game to just four more goals the rest of the way. Edson scored both of her goals during the second quarter as the Buffs outscored Florida 4-1 in the frame to take a 5-3 lead at halftime. Florida scored the first goal of the second half to pull within 5-4, but a pair of goals from Shoup gave the Buffs a 7-4 lead going into the fourth quarter.

… Continue reading story here …

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May 1st

… Citius, Altius, Fortius …

10th-ranked CU women’s Lacrosse advances to Big 12 finals with semi-final win over Arizona State

From CUBuffs.com … An offensive flurry to end the first half, spurred by Rowan Edson and Maddie Shoup, led the second-seeded Colorado Buffaloes to a 13-7 win over Arizona State in the semifinals of the 2026 Big 12 Lacrosse Tournament at Donald R. Dizney Stadium Thursday night.

Colorado (13-3) advances to the Big 12 Tournament Championship after taking down the Sun Devils (8-10) for the second time in the last week. This is the seventh conference championship appearance for the Buffs and the first since 2014. Colorado is looking for its first-ever conference tournament championship.

“We knew coming into this, it was going to be a tougher game than we had last Saturday against them in Boulder,” head coach Ann Elliott Whidden said. “I thought Arizona State came out aggressive and fought and really challenged us in a lot of different ways. I’m proud of the group for fighting and not expecting it to be easy, and finding a way to get it done. Our ability to respond in the game, when they went on a couple of runs, we were able to gain possession and respond on the offensive end, which was great.”

Colorado improved to 11-4 against the Sun Devils all-time, while also exacting a measure of revenge against the team that ended the Buffaloes’ season in last year’s Big 12 tournament semifinal on home soil at Prentup Field.

Offensively, the Buffs were led by Edson, Teagan Ryan, and Shoup, who all had hat-tricks. Edson and Shoup did most of their work in the first half, scoring three goals apiece. Ryan picked it up in the second half with two goals to go along with another from Shoup to give her four on the night.

CU was able to outshoot the Sun Devils 29-14 overall and 21-3 on shots on goal. The Buffs were also able to control possession with a 14-8 advantage on draw controls and 20-12 on ground balls.

“Possession was huge for us,” Whidden commented. “The draw is huge for us, obviously today, but it’ll be huge on Saturday against Florida as well. That is something I think we’ve continued to improve on, and our ability to give ourselves a few extra possessions definitely helps overall.”

The Buffs will advance to the 2026 Big 12 women’s lacrosse tournament championship on Sunday against the host school and top-seeded Florida. The match will take place on Saturday, May 2, at 9:30 a.m., MT (time changed due to the weather) and will be broadcast live on ESPNU from Donald R. Dizney Stadium.

Colorado continues its streak of having not allowed any opponent to reach 10 goals in all 16 games this season…Colorado has won a game at the conference tournament in 11 of 13 possible years…Shoup recorded her 12th career hat-trick and her fifth of the season, as well as setting a new career-high with 12 shots…Edson recorded hat tricks in back-to-back games for the first time in her career … Jess Peluso led the team with five caused turnovers and draw controls…Assini has recorded a point in 32 straight games.

… Read full story here …

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March 14th

… Citius, Altius, Fortius … 

Buffs finish second in NCAA ski championships to Utah – for the fourth time in six years

From the Daily Camera … Colorado came up just short of another national title.

On Saturday at the NCAA skiing championships, host Utah had a strong performance in the Nordic races to surge past the Buffaloes and claim the national championship for the second year in a row.

Utah finished with 549.5 points, as CU was a close second, at 539. It was the sixth-smallest margin of victory in NCAA championship history and the second smallest in the last 26 years.

The Utes have won six of the last seven national titles, while CU was runner-up for the second consecutive year and for the fourth time in the last six years. This was the 20th time since NCAA skiing went co-ed in 1983 that CU has finished in the top two, including nine championships.

Denver placed third, with 386.5 points, while Montana State (376.5) and Vermont (334) rounded out the top five.

After entering Saturday with the lead, CU opened the day with a disappointing outing for the women, who finished fourth overall in the 20K freestyle with 56 points – 21 behind Vermont and 14 behind Utah.

All three CU skiers were top eight in that event at the 2025 nationals, but none of them were top eight this time.

… Continue reading story here …

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March 13th 

… Citius, Altius, Fortius … 

It’s down to CU and Utah – Buffs hold slim lead at NCAA championships heading into final day

… CU: 415 points … Utah: 408.5 points (third-place Montana State is over 100 points behind) … The NCAA Championships conclude Saturday morning (women at 8:15; men at 10:15) with the 20K freestyle races … You can follow live scoring Saturday morning here …

From CUBuffs.com … The Colorado Buffaloes Ski Team reclaimed the lead at the NCAA Championships Friday, putting together another steady alpine performance at Utah Olympic Park to move back in front of host Utah heading into the final day of competition.

Behind a third-place finish from Louison Accambray in the women’s slalom and a tie for fifth from Feb Allasina and Filip Wahlqvist in the men’s race, the Buffaloes scored 127 points on the day and now lead the championship standings with 415 points, 6.5 ahead of Utah (408.5) entering Saturday’s decisive 20K freestyle races at Soldier Hollow.

The stakes and pressure of the day were evident throughout the races as Colorado fought to maintain its position in the title race.

“The pressure is something else,” Accambray said. “We have a lot of pressure because we don’t just want to do well for ourselves, we want to do well for the whole team because we love each other and we’re a big family. We just want to succeed together.”

Colorado finished second in both races Friday with 60 points in the women’s race and 67 in the men’s race, continuing an incredibly consistent week. The Buffaloes have now placed second in all six races at the championships, the two women’s alpine races behind Montana State and the other four races behind Utah, but remain atop the overall standings.

With just two races remaining, Colorado and Utah have separated themselves in the championship battle. Denver (314.5) holds a narrow edge over Montana State (304.5) for third place, while Middlebury (229), Dartmouth (222) and Vermont (213) round out the top seven as the RMISA continues to occupy the top four positions in the standings.

The NCAA Championships conclude Saturday with the 20K freestyle races at Soldier Hollow, the final races of both the championship and the 2026 season. The women’s race begins at 8:30 a.m., followed by the men at 10:15 a.m., with the national title still up for grabs between Colorado and Utah.

“We’re going to be loud tomorrow,” Accambray said. “I have no doubt the Nordies will give everything they have. No matter what we’re proud of them — we just want them to have fun. We’ll be there cheering.”

Wahlqvist echoed the anticipation heading into the final day.

“Slalom is the most nerve-racking sport in the world,” he said. “The whole field can flip in the second run. It’s so mental. Tomorrow is going to be amazing and nerve-racking. It will probably be decided in the final race.”

Team Scores (Through Six of Eight Races) — 1. Colorado 415; 2. Utah 408½; 3. Denver 314½; 4. Montana State 304½; 5. Middlebury 229; 6. Dartmouth 222; 7. Vermont 213; 8. Alaska Anchorage 156; 9. New Hampshire 149½; 10. Nevada 107; 11. Colby 106; 12. Alaska Fairbanks 93½; 13. Westminster 69; 14. Northern Michigan 51; 15. Michigan Tech 36½; 16. Harvard 32; 17. Boston College 20½; 18. St. Lawrence 18½; 19. St. Michael’s 17; 20. Williams 14; 21. St. Scholastica 2; 22. Bowdoin 1.

… Read full story here …

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March 12th 

CU ski team seeking national championship No. 21 

From CUBuffs.com … The Colorado Buffaloes Ski Team will take a deep and balanced lineup into the 2026 NCAA Ski Championships, set for March 11-14 at Utah Olympic Park and Soldier Hollow, led by a group of skiers that have combined for 17 wins and 58 podium finishes this season.

Headlining the Buffaloes’ lineup are RMISA MVP winners Louison Accambray, Filip Wahlqvist, Storm Pedersen and Tilde Baangman, anchoring a deep team across both alpine and Nordic disciplines as the Buffs chase the program’s 22nd NCAA skiing national championship.

Colorado qualified a full 12-skier team, one of seven programs nationally to do so, and enters the championships with a mix of experienced veterans and rising newcomers. Six skiers have competed previously at the NCAA Championships while six will be making their debuts on the sport’s biggest collegiate stage.

The Buffaloes are seeking to add another chapter to one of the sport’s most decorated traditions. Colorado has captured 21 NCAA skiing national championships in its history — 11 men’s titles, one women’s crown and nine coed championships — and has finished first or second in 14 of the last 19 NCAA Championships. The Buffs are also the only program nationally to place in the top four in each of the last 19 championships.

Colorado’s lineup features experience in key spots. Tilde Baangman will compete in her fourth NCAA Championships, while Johannes Flaaten and Filip Wahlqvist are making their third appearances. Louison Accambray, Astri Lunde and Nina Schamberger are each making their second NCAA appearances.

Six other Buffs — Feb Allasina, Justin Bigatel, Paige DeHart, Cathinka Lunder, Jakob Moch and Storm Pedersen — will be making their NCAA Championships debuts.

Colorado’s 12 NCAA qualifiers have finished 117 of 134 races this season, producing 99 top-10 finishes and 76 top-five performances, including 58 podium appearances and 17 victories entering the national championships.

… Continue reading story here …

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This post, about the Spring Practices game, from the 2026 Season, is filed under Article.
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