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Olympic Sports
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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.
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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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