STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, Colo. – The Denver Pioneers ski team had five student-athletes earn top 10 finishes on Thursday in men's and women's giant slalom at the RMISA Alpine Qualifier at Steamboat Resort's Mount Werner.
No team scores were given on Thursday as the races were a prelude to the Spencer James Nelson Colorado Invitational and served as an extra qualifying event for the athletes for the NCAA Championships. The CU Invite takes place over the next two days with alpine and Nordic events, and there will also be an extra alpine qualifier prior to the RMISA Championships on Jan. 22 at Big Sky Resort in Bozeman, Montana.
Denver seniors
Trey Seymour and
Nora Brand were among the day's biggest movers in the pair of GS races as Seymour placed fourth in the men's event and Brand came in ninth among the women.
Seymour was 17th after the first run but had the fastest second run of the day at 54.78 to finish in fourth with a total time of 1:49.25. Brand was 16th after her first descent and posted the fourth-fastest second run at 59.51 to climb up to ninth on the women's leaderboard (2:00.14).
A Steamboat Springs native, Seymour picked up his second top-five finish of his career, with his previous best being a podium result in third on the same giant slalom course at the 2023 RMISA Championships. He has recorded top-15 finishes in four of the five events this year. Seymour held the top spot of the podium for much of the second run before he was dethroned with three racers to go.
For Brand, she grabbed her fourth top-10 result of the campaign and has now finished in the top 11 in all five races in 2024.
Sophomore
Sara Rask led the Denver women in fifth place, picking up her second top-five and fourth top-10 result of the season with a time of 1:59.01, while classmate
Josephine Trueblood placed 32nd. Sophomore
Mia Hunt and freshman
Liv Mortiz are not racing this week as they are competing for Team USA at the FIS Alpine Junior World Championship.
Junior
Cooper Cornelius recorded a season-best result in sixth in the men's giant slalom and has now come in the top 10 in all three events in the discipline this year. He now has 13 top-10 finishes in his career.
Sophomore
Adrian Minde Hunshammer had a career-best eighth-place finish after posting a first descent time of 53.88 and holding his position in the top 10 in run 2 (1:49.57). His previous best result was 11th in slalom at last year's Alaska Anchorage Invitational and in this year's Utah Invite giant slalom on Jan. 20.
Freshman
Christian Soevik finished 14th, while sophomores
Jack Bowers and
Thomas Hoffman were 20th and 22nd, respectively.
Utah took the top spot on the podium in each race as Mikkel Solbakken won the men's event and Madison Hoffman picked up where she left off in her season debut after sweeping the 2023 NCAA Championships. Westminster's Loic Chable came in second in the men's race and Leon Nikic of Alaska Anchorage placed third. Colorado's Magdalena Luczak (second) and Westminster's Hannah Saethereng made up the rest of the podium in the women's giant slalom.
UP NEXT: The Colorado Invitational gets underway on Friday as the eight alpine and Nordic events will take place over two days in Steamboat Springs. Friday features another alpine giant slalom race at Mount Werner while the Nordic athletes compete in 7.5K freestyle at Howelsen Hill Ski Area. The action on Saturday will be entirely at Howelsen Hill with the 20K classic mass start and a night alpine slalom.
The Denver Invitational begins on Monday and Tuesday with slalom races at Loveland Ski Area.
DENVER MEN GIANT SLALOM INDIVIDUAL RESULTS
4.
Trey Seymour, 1:49.25 (54.47/54.78)
6.
Cooper Cornelius, 1:49.41 (53.19/56.22)
8.
Adrian Minde Hunshammer, 1:49.57 (53.71/55.86)
14.
Christian Soevik, 1:50.44 (55.23/55.21)
20.
Jack Bowers, 1:50.84 (55.12/55.72)
22.
Thomas Hoffman, 1:51.26 (55.14/56.12)
DENVER WOMEN GIANT SLALOM INDIVIDUAL RESULTS
5.
Sara Rask, 1:59.01 (59.11/59.90)
9.
Nora Brand, 2:00.14 (1:00.63/59.51)
32.
Josephine Trueblood, 2:07.05 (1:03.38/1:03.67)
MEN'S GIANT SLALOM TOP 10 (44 finishers): 1. Mikkel Solbakken, UU, 1:48.88; 2. Loic Chable, WMU, 1:49.18; 3. Leon Nikic, UAA, 1:49.21;
4. Trey Seymour, DU, 1:49.25; 5. Louis Fausa, CU, 1:49.32;
6. Cooper Cornelius, DU, 1:49.41; 7. Wilhelm Normannseth, UU, 1:49.43;
8. Adrian Minde Hunshammer, DU, 1:49.57; 9. Sindre Myklebust, UU, 1:49.59; 10. Etienne Mazellier, CU, 1:49.93.
WOMEN'S GIANT SLALOM TOP 10 (33 finishers): 1. Madison Hoffman, UU, 1;57.42; 2. Magdalena Luczak, CU, 1:57.62; Hannah Saethereng, WMU, 1:58.92; 4. Kaja Norbye, UU, 1:58.94;
5. Sara Rask, DU, 1:59.01; 6. Justine Lamontagne, MSU, 1:59.50; 7. Evelina Fredricsson, WMU, 1:59.92; 8. Emma Hammergaard, CU, 2:00.09;
9. Nora Brand, DU, 2:00.14; 10. Kaila Lafreniere, UU, 2:00.27.
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