RENO, Nev. – Sophomore
Liv Moritz captured her second career victory on Saturday for the Denver Pioneers ski team in her return to the collegiate level.
Moritz ran away with the women's slalom win in the RMISA Alpine Qualifier at Mount Rose-Ski Tahoe to begin four days of races in the Sierra Nevada. She posted the fastest time in each run and beat second-place Louison Accambray of Colorado (1:37.46) by nearly three seconds, clocking in at 1:34.59.
"I was just trying to put my foot into the groove because it did get a little bumpy," the DU redshirt sophomore said. "I think that really helped me."
It was Moritz's third career podium and first in slalom. Her previous best in the event was a ninth-place result in the 2024 Denver Invitational, and her only other victory came in giant slalom at the 2024 Utah Invitational.
The Vail, Colorado, native redshirted the collegiate season last winter and was racing on the RMISA circuit for the first time since earning All-American honors at 2024 NCAA Championships in Steamboat Springs.
Mortiz had spent most of the past two months with the U.S. Ski Team in FIS World Cup and Europa Cup events, and she rejoined Denver after recording her first career World Cup points with a 13th-place result in slalom at Spindleruv Mlyn, Czechia, on Jan. 25. Additionally, she won the Europa Cup second slalom race at Valle Aurina/Ahrntal, Italy, on Dec. 20.
"It was super, super exciting. Honestly, I was not expecting that at all," Moritz said of her top World Cup result. "I just came down and was in such a shock. It was one of the best feelings ever."
Denver graduate student
Sara Rask came in fourth in 1:37.83, finishing just a tenth of a second behind Utah's Melanie Dahlberg in third (1:37.73). Rask has finished in the top four in all five races this season.
Freshman
Cecilia Pizzinato grabbed her third-straight top 10 and first in slalom by coming in seventh and senior
Josephine Trueblood picked up her second top 12 of the campaign in 11th place. Senior
Nicola Rountree-Williams was 13th, while sophomore
Stella Buchheister (run 2) and freshman
Elisabeth Creighton (run 1) did not finish.
Senior
Christian Soevik and grad student
Eirik Kveno were the only two Pioneers that finished the men's race. Soevik earned a season best in fourth place for his first top five since the 2024 NCAA Championships, while Kveno earned his first top 10 in his three seasons at DU and his first since coming in eighth in GS and ninth in slalom at the 2023 NCAA Championships in Lake Placid, New York, while a member of St. Michael's College.
Freshman
Caman Beauregard did not finish the second run while seniors
Adrian Minde Hunshammer and
Thomas Hoffman and sophomore
Pietro Motterlini didn't complete their initial descents down Mount Rose.
No team scores were counted on Saturday as the race was an individual qualifier, giving the skiers an additional opportunity to qualify for the NCAA Championships in March. There is another RMISA Alpine Qualifier on Monday in giant slalom.
Colorado Mountain College's Lucas Ellis won the men's slalom race, giving the CMC "Skigles" their first men's individual victory. Utah's Johs Herland was second and Westminster's Alejandro Puente Tasias was third.
DU and the rest of RMISA was making its return to Lake Tahoe for racing for the first time since 2010 when the University of Nevada last hosted a home meet.
UP NEXT: Denver officially begins the Alpine-only Nevada Invitational on Sunday with the second day of slalom races. Another alpine qualifier is set for Monday in giant slalom before the GS wraps up the Nevada Invite on Tuesday.
DENVER WOMEN SLALOM INDIVIDUAL RESULTS
1.
Liv Moritz, 1:34.59 (45.84/48.75)
4.
Sara Rask, 1:37.83 (46.90/50.93)
7.
Cecilia Pizzinato, 1:38.69 (49.02/49.67)
11.
Josephine Trueblood, 1:40.70 (49.28/51:42)
13.
Nicola Rountree-Williams, 1:41.28 {49.26/52.02)
DNF:
Stella Buchheister (49.45/DNF Run 2),
Elisabeth Creighton (Run 1)
DNR:
Mia Hunt
DENVER MEN SLALOM INDIVIDUAL RESULTS
4.
Christian Soevik, 1:36.56 (47.07/49.49)
7.
Eirik Kveno, 1:36.87 (46.97/49.90)
DNF:
Caman Beauregard (47.61/DNF Run 2),
Adrian Minde Hunshammer (Run 1),
Pietro Motterlini (Run 1),
Thomas Hoffman (Run 1)
WOMEN'S SLALOM TOP 10 (19 finishers): 1. Liv Moritz, DU, 1:34.59; 2. Louison Accambray, CU, 1:37.46; 3. Melanie Dahlberg, UU, 1:37.73;
4. Sara Rask, DU, 1:37.83; 5. Eric Lynch, UN, 1:38.18; 6. Alexa Brownlie, CU, 1:38.63;
7. Cecilia Pizzinato, DU, 1:38.69; 8. Paige DeHart, CU, 1:38.37; 9. Guro Hestad Vognild, WU, 1:40.40; 10. Maddie Welling, CMC, 1:40.65.
MEN'S GIANT SLALOM TOP 10 (20 finishers): 1. Lucas Ellis, CMC, 1:34.16; 2. Johs Herland, UU, 1:35.56; 3. Alejandro Puente Tasias, WU, 1:36.33;
4. Christian Soevik, DU, 1:36.56; 5. Loic Spiegelberg, MSU, 1:36.674; 6. Tommaso Olcese, UAA, 1:36.82;
7. Eirik Kveno, DU, 1:36.87; 8. Dylan Timm, UAA, 1:37.31; 9. Samuel McDermot, CMC, 1:37.48; 10. Peyton Wells, UN, 1:37.59.
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