PARK CITY, Utah. – University of Denver skiing senior Mia Hunt has produced some massive second runs this season and that trend continued on the first day of the 2026 NCAA Championships.
 
Wearing bib 31, Hunt moved up nine spots from run 1 to run 2 on Wednesday to lead the Pioneers and finish on the podium in third place in women's alpine giant slalom at Utah Olympic Park. She clocked the second-fastest afternoon time and finished with a total mark of 2:05.81.
 
Montana State's Justine Lamontagne won the individual women's national championship in 2:03.98 and was more than half a second ahead of Colorado's Louison Accambray in second (2:05.60).
 
It was the Park City, Utah, native's fifth career podium and her first in GS; her previous best finish in the speed discipline was a pair of sixth-place results at the 2025 RMISA Utah Alpine Qualifier and 2025 Alaska Anchorage Invitational. Hunt, who specializes more in slalom, also earned her first career All-American first-team honor on the day and her third overall in her career. She placed 10th in GS last year at Dartmouth Skiway, New Hampshire, to earn second-team accolades.
 
Freshman Cecilia Pizzinato made her NCAA debut and placed 11th.
 
Defending national champion Sara Rask was among a handful of top skiers that didn't finish the first run as Nevada's Erica Lynch along with Dartmouth's and U.S. Ski Team member Emma Resnick also registered DNFs in the morning descent. There were eight DNFs overall in the women's race and six in the men's event.
 
Denver earned two other All-American honors in men's slalom, with senior Adrian Minde Hunshammer placing eighth in his first career national championship race and classmate Christian Soevik finishing ninth to earn his third career All-America award after climbing into the top 10 after being 11th in run 1. Sophomore Pietro Motterlini was DU's third men's finisher and tied for 21st.
 
Johs Herland defended his men's giant slalom title for host Utah and was joined on the stage by CU's Feb Allasina—who produced the fastest second-run—in second and Middlebury's Nick Unkovskoy in third.
 
While the Pioneers likely left points on the hill, the team is still in a good spot after day 1-of-4 at the National Collegiate Skiing Championships. DU is in fourth place with 108.5 points and just a single point behind Montana State in third (109.5). The Pios trail second-place Utah by 24.5 points, and the Utes are just four points back of leader Colorado (137).
 
UP NEXT: The national championships shift over to Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway for the first day of cross-country races on Thursday. The Nordic 7.5-kilometer classical begins with the men's interval start at 9 a.m. while the women take the course at 10:30 a.m. MT.
 
The last day of alpine is Friday with slalom at Utah Olympic Park before the NCAAs conclude with the 20K freestyle on Saturday at Soldier Hollow.
 
 
DENVER WOMEN GIANT SLALOM INDIVIDUAL RESULTS
2. Mia Hunt, 2:05:81 (1:05:55/1:00.26)
11. Cecilia Pizzinato, 2:06.99 (1:05.26/1:01.73)
DNF: Sara Rask (Run 1)
 
DENVER MEN GIANT SLALOM INDIVIDUAL RESULTS
8. Adrian Minde Hunshammer, 1:56.47 (58:36/58.11)
9. Christian Soevik, 1:56.56 (58.75/57.81)
T21. Pietro Motterlini, 1:57.84 (58.97/58.87)
 
TEAM STANDINGS (through 2-of-8 events): 1. Colorado 137; 2. Utah 133; 3. Montana State 109.5; 4. Denver 108.5; 5. Middlebury 94; 6. New Hampshire 72; 7. Dartmouth 60; 8. Nevada 51; 9. Colby 48; 10. Westminster 44; 11. Vermont 41.5; 12. Alaska Anchorage 34; 13. St. Lawrence 17.5; 14. Boston College 11; 15. St. Michael's 10; 16. Williams 8; 17. Harvard 6.
 
WOMEN'S GIANT SLALOM TOP 10 (26 finishers): 1. Justine Lamontagne, MSU, 2:03.98; 2. Louison Accambray, CU, 2:05.60; 3. Mia Hunt, DU, 2:05:81; 4. Guro Hestad Vognild, WU, 2:06.09; 5. Melanie Dahlberg, UU, 2:06.12; 6. Kjersti Moritz, MID, 2:06:16; 7. Ella Bromee, UAA, 2:06.43; 8. Cathinka Lunder, CU, 2:06:64; 9. Carly Elsinger, DAR, 2:06.72; 10. Kaila Lafreniere, UU, 1:05.66.
 
MEN'S GIANT SLALOM TOP 10 (28 finishers): 1. Johs Herland, UU, 1:55.41; 2.  Feb Allasina, CU, 1:55.82; 3. Nick Unkovskoy, MID, 1:56.10; 4. Townsend Mikell, CBC, 1:56.13; 5. Oscar Zimmer, DAR, 1:56.24; 6. Sindre Myklebust, UU, 1:56.26; 7. Filip Wahlqvist, CU, 1:56.33; 8. Adrian Minde Hunshammer, DU, 1:56.47; 9. Christian Soevik, DU, 1:56.56; 10. Jayden Buckrell, UNH, 1:56.69.
 

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