PARK CITY, Utah – Junior Nora Brand of the Denver Pioneers ski team won the women's slalom of the Westminster Invitational on Wednesday as the alpine schedule of the 2024 collegiate season got on Wednesday at Utah Olympic Park.
 
Despite snow and winter weather causing havoc on the course, including forcing day's races to be delayed several times and 47 total student-athletes to record a DNF, Denver remained in second place in the Westminster Invite with 419 points after beginning the competition in the same position.
 
Brand led a group of five Pioneers that were able to finish both runs and keep Denver within reach of the overall meet title heading into the giant slalom on the final day. DU is just 58 points behind leading Utah (477) and hold a 21-point advantage over third-place Alaska Anchorage.
 
Brand recorded a total time of 1:35.51 and produced the fastest time in run 1 at 49.02 seconds, which was 85-hundredths of a second faster in the morning than the next closest competitor in Utah's Michelle Kerven. The Munich, Germany, native held onto her lead in the afternoon session to pick up her third career victory.
 
Each of Brand's previous two wins also came in slalom, with her winning gold at both events in Alaska last February at the UAA Seawolf Invitational and RMISA Championships. She now has seven career podiums and has reached the stand in seven of her last nine races dating back to her first podium appearance in slalom 1 at the 2023 Denver Invitational.
 
Sophomore Josephine Trueblood was the only other Pioneer woman to finish both runs and finished in 14th with a time of 1:43.53 for her second career top-15 result. Sophomore Mia Hunt DNF'd in the first run, while freshman Liv Moritz and sophomore Sara Rask both weren't able to finish their second descents.
 
Alaska Anchorage's Ainsley Proffit placed second behind Brand and Utah's Kaja Norbye came in third to round out the women's podium
 
Denver was able to have all three of its scorers in the men's event, led by a ninth-place finish from sophomore Jack Bowers, who posted a total time of 1:29.65 for his third career top-10 finish. Each of his previous two top-10 results came in the two slaloms at last year's Westminster Invitational.
 
Senior Trey Seymour was DU's second scorer in 15th for his fourth career top 15, and sophomore Thomas Hoffman placed in 17th. Junior Cooper Cornelius (Run 1), sophomore Adrian Minde Hunshammer (Run 2) and freshman Christian Soevik (Run 2) ended the day without finishing for the Pioneer men.
 
Colorado's Filip Wahlqvist won the men's slalom with Alaska Anchorage's Leon Nikic placing second and Westminster's Loic Chable finishing third. After only having two finishers in the women's' slalom, Utah had all three of its scorers in the top 10 in the men's race, placing seventh, eighth and 10th, respectively.
 
UP NEXT: The Pioneers will stay on the slalom course on Thursday with the Utah Invitational portion, which doesn't have snow in the forecast. The week wraps up with the Westminster Invitational giant slalom on Friday and the Utah Invite's GS on Saturday at Olympic Park.
 
NOTES

• Nora Brand posted the fastest first run while Sara Rask was third fastest in the morning session
• Jack Bowers posted the third-fastest first run in the men's slalom while Trey Seymour was the fifth fastest in run 2.
• Freshmen Liv Moritz and Christian Soevik both made their collegiate debuts.
• Denver women placed third in the women's team results (58 points) while the men were fifth (54 points)
• Overall, 26 men and 21 women posted DNFs on the day.

DENVER WOMEN SLALOM INDIVIDUAL RESULTS
1. Nora Brand, 1:35.51 (49.02/46.49)
14. Josephine Trueblood, 1:43.53 (55.11/48.42)
DNF: Mia Hunt (Run 1), Liv Moritz (55.29/DNF Run 2), Sara Rask (50.17/DNF Run 2)
 
DENVER MEN SLALOM INDIVIDUAL RESULTS
9. Jack Bowers, 1:29.65 (43.48/46.17)
15. Trey Seymour, 1:30.15 (46.25/43.90)
17. Thomas Hoffman, 1:30.54 (46.28/44.26)
DNF: Cooper Cornelius (Run 1), Christian Soevik (45.95/DNF Run 2), Adrian Minde Hunshammer (45.92/DNF Run 2)
 
TEAM STANDINGS (through 6-of-8 events): 1. Utah 477; 2. Denver 419; 3. Alaska Anchorage 398; 4. Montana State 375; 5. Colorado 372; 6. Alaska Fairbanks 260; 7 Wyoming 134; 8. Westminster 107; 9 Colorado Mountain College 64; Nevada 52.
 
WOMEN'S SLALOM TOP 10 (17 finishers): 1. Nora Brand, DU, 1:35.51; 2. Ainsley Proffit, UAA, 1:36.39; 3. Kaja Norbye, UU, 1:36.89; 4. Kristiane Bekkestad, MSU, 1:37.30; 5. Ella Bromee, UAA, 1:38.81; 6. Julia Toiviainen, CU, 1:39.05; 7. Lana Zbasnik, MSU, 1:40.62; 8. Caroline Jones, CU, 1:41.50; 9. Melanie Dahlberg, UU, 1:41.52; 10. Nellie Talbot, MSU, 1:41.57.
 
MEN'S SLALOM TOP 10 (27 finishers): 1. Filip Wahlqvist, CU, 1:27.73; 2. Leon Nikic, UAA, 1:28.01; 3. Loic Chable, WMC, 1:28.71; 4. Gianluca, Boehm, MSU, 1:28.74; 5. Jeremie Lagier, WMC, 1:28.81; 6. Jan Ronner, UAA, 1:28.97; 7. Mikkel Solbakken, UU, 1:29.26; 8. Oliver Parazette, UU, 1:29.41; 9. Jack Bowers, DU, 1:29.65; 10. Jay Poulter, UU, 1:29.67.
 

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