STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, Colo. -- While the alpine teams are two-thirds of the way through their regular season, the Nordic teams finally got the 2020 season underway Saturday at Ikon Pass' Steamboat Springs, and the Pioneers remain in third place through six of eight races in the Colorado Invitational.

Not quite running at full strength, the Pioneers didn't have any top 10 finishers in the 5K women's and 10K men's freestyle races at Howelsen Hill. OleMarius Kirkeng led the way for the Pioneers in 13th place in the men's race and Borgar Norrud also earned a top 20 finish, taking 20th. Jimmy Colfer in 23rd and Nick Sweeney in 27th rounded out the men's race. 

The three DU women finished bunched together with Emma Larsson taking 22nd, Vera Norli 23rd and Gracie Shanley 25th.  

Denver did remain in third place in the meet standings, scoring 94 points on the day, but the lead stretched out a bit. Utah leads with 541 points, up 71 on second-place Colorado (470), who is then 74.5 points up on DU's total of 395.5. Alaska Anchorage (382) and Montana State (318.5) round out the top five. 

The Nordic teams will be back in action Sunday to finish out the Colorado Invitational with the 15K women's and 20K men's classic races. The mass start races will begin with the women's race at 9 a.m. (MT), followed by the men at 10 a.m. (MT).

 SHOP PIONEERS:
Get dressed for Game Day! Get your Pioneers gear at ShopPioneers.com, the official online store of University of Denver Athletics.
 
PIONEER MOVEMENT: 
Fans interested in making a donation to the ski program can do so by clicking here. Your contribution will make a direct impact on the success of YOUR Pioneers. Thank you in advance for your unwavering support of our student-athletes and their quest for excellence.  

2020 DENVER ATHLETIC HALL OF FAME RECEPTION: Denver announced its 2020 Athletic Hall of Fame class in January. The inductees will be honored on the DU campus May 16. For more information, registration for the reception and donation information, click here.