LOVELAND SKI AREA, Colo. – Denver Pioneers skiing senior
Sara Rask won her second women's slalom race in as many days as the 2025 Denver Invitational officially got underway on Tuesday at Loveland Ski Area.
Rask swept the technical races at Loveland and nabbed her ninth career victory. It is the first time that she has won back-to-back races since sweeping the giant slalom events in Alaska in 2023, winning UAA Invitational and the RMISA Championships on Feb. 21-22, 2023.
"I'm in a very good space mentally and I have been skiing very well, so I know that," Rask said. "I just try and go into every race being excited to ski fast."
The Pioneers are in third place at their own meet with 154.5 points. They are just 26.5 points behind leader Colorado (181) and trail second-place Utah by 3.5 points. DU is 30 points up on Alaska Anchorage, which is in fourth place (124.5).
The Denver women finished second as a team in slalom, as they were just one point behind UAA (84.5-83.5). Rask led the field with a 12-hundredths of a second advantage after run 1 and the fourth-fastest time in the afternoon was enough to keep her on top of the podium—the 19th of career.
DU's other two scorers finished in the top 10 with junior
Nicola Rountree-Williams in eighth and junior
Mia Hunt tying for 10th. Freshman
Stella Buchheister earned her second-straight top-15 placement in 14th and junior
Josephine Trueblood ended up in 23rd.
Denver's men had each of their three scorers in the top 12 and placed third in the team event with 71 points. Graduate student
Loic Chable picked up his first top five of the season and as a Pioneer in fifth place; he moved up from eighth after the first run.
"The second run was a battle," Chable said. "The slope wasn't the best so it was just a battle. I'm just happy I made it down and got a solid result, but hungry for more."
Junior
Thomas Hoffman came in ninth for his second consecutive top 10, and senior
Eirik Kveno placed 12th—his best result since coming in ninth in slalom at the 2023 NCAA Championships while a member of St. Michael's College. Freshman
Pietro Motterlini was 18th and senior
Cooper Cornelius came in 21st.
Junior
Christian Soevik led after run 1 but posted a DNF at the end of his second run. Junior
Adrian Minde Hunshammer also didn't finish the afternoon session.
A pair of Buffaloes finished atop the men's podium as Filip Wahlqvist repeated as the men's slalom winner and Etienne Mazellier was second. Utah's Harry Hoffman came in third.
The women's podium was a repeat from Monday's alpine qualifier event at Loveland, as Ella Bromee of Alaska Anchorage and Ashley Campbell of Colorado finished second and third behind Rask.
UP NEXT: The Denver Invitational wraps up its alpine races on Wednesday with giant slalom at Copper Mountain Resort. This is the best place to view this year's meet as the finish area is walkable from the East Village base area. The Nordic portion of the DU Invite is Feb. 8-9 at Maloit Park in Minturn, Colorado.
DENVER WOMEN SLALOM INDIVIDUAL RESULTS
1.
Sara Rask, 1:29.43 (44.23/45.20)
8.
Nicola Rountree-Williams, 1:31.21 (45.08/46.13)
T10.
Mia Hunt, 1:31.41 (45.86/45.55)
14.
Stella Buchheister, 1:32.39 (47.18/45.21)
23.
Josephine Trueblood, 1:34.07 (48.26/45.81)
DENVER MEN SLALOM INDIVIDUAL RESULTS
5.
Loic Chable, 1:32.28 (43.10/49.18)
9.
Thomas Hoffman, 1:32.57 (43.22/49.35)
12.
Eirik Kveno, 1:32.70 (44.32/48.38)
18.
Pietro Motterlini, 1:33.20 (44.09/49.11)
21.
Cooper Cornelius, 1:33.80 (45.06/48.74)
DNF:
Christian Soevik (42.16/DNF run 2),
Adrian Minde Hunshammer (45.74/DNF run 2)
TEAM STANDINGS (through 2-of-8 events): 1. Colorado 181; 2. Utah 158;
3. Denver 154.5; 4. Alaska Anchorage 124.5; 5. Nevada 85; 6. Montana State 83; 7. Colorado Mountain College 75; 8. Westminster 71
WOMEN'S SLALOM TOP 10 (32 finishers): 1. Sara Rask, DU, 1;29.43; 2. Ella Bromee, UAA, 1:29.71; 3. Ashley Campbell, CU, 1:30.51; 4. Louison Accambray CU, 1:30.55; 5. Tea Kiesel, MSU, 1:30.65; 6. Carmen Nielssen, UAA, 1:30.87; 7. Kaila Lafreniere, UU, 1:30.98;
8. Nicola Rountree-Williams, DU, 1:31.21; 9. Claire Timmermann, UU, 1:31.33;
T10. Mia Hunt, DU, 1:31.41; T10. Ainsley Proffit, UAA, 1:31.41
MEN'S SLALOM TOP 10 (30 finishers): 1. Filip Wahlqvist, CU, 1:31.35; 2. Etienne Mazellier, CU, 1:31,76; 3. Harry Hoffman, UU, 1:31.83; 4. Wilhelm Normannseth, UU, 1:32.24;
5. Loic Chable, DU, 1:32.28; 6. Johs Herland, UU; 7. Roman Frost, WMU, 1:32.32; 8. Justin Bigatel, CU, 1:32.55;
9. Thomas Hoffman, DU, 1:32.57; 10. Jacob Dilling, CU, 1:32.57.
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