On the strength of John Buchar’s championship runs in the giant slalom and slalom, Denver captured its 19th National Collegiate Men’s and Women’s Skiing Championships team title in Bozeman, Montana, overcoming a 17.5 point deficit on the final day of competition. 

It was the first time in 11 years that the school in the lead going into the last day of the championship did not win the title. Denver trailed Colorado heading into the last day. 

Buchar, a native of Sweden, was the second Denver skier to win both slaloms. In 2007, Adam Cole won both events, but he was sidelined this year with a broken leg. 

“The only thing that mattered for me was that we won as a team,” Buchar said. “That is even better than both of my wins. Everything was a team effort. We had a rough season with a lot of injuries, and a lot of people didn’t think we had the best team.” 

But the Pioneers showed their strength from the start, leading after the first two days of competition. After the third day, Denver was trailing Colorado, but the Pioneers ended up with 649.5 points. The Buffalos finished second with 619, followed by Utah with 550. Last year’s champion Dartmouth came in fourth with 546, and Middlebury rounded out the top five with 529. 

In addition to Buchar, the Pioneers’ Seppi Steigler saw the medal stand, placing second in the slalom. Three Denver women racked up third-place finishes – Jenni Lathrop in the slalom, Antje Maempel in the 15-kilometer classical cross country and Annelise Bailly in the 5-kilomenter freestyle cross country. 

Maempel, Bailly, Buchar, Lathrop, Steigler and Francesco Ghedina were named first team all-Americans. 

“I could not be more proud of this team,” Denver’s Alpine head coach Andy LeRoy said. “All of our athletes worked hard all year toward the goal of winning an NCAA championship, and they all skied their best when it counted.” 

Colorado’s skiers built their three-day lead on the strength of four individual champions, including senior Lucie Zikova, who won her second and third career NCAA individual title, placing first in the giant slalom and the slalom after earning only a fifth-place time on her first run. 

“No one comes here to be fifth, so I had nothing to lose. It actually helped me out because I had nothing to lose and I just went for it. … Overall as a team, we did great,” she said. “We definitely could have done better, but it’s a race and that’s what happens sometimes. If we weren’t the best team here today skiing, I’m sure that we were the best team overall, because I love my team and no matter what happens, they’re the best team. I love them.” 

In addition to Zikova, Colorado’s Maria Grevsgaard (women’s five-kilomenter freestyle cross country and women’s 15-kilometer classical cross country) took home titles. 

Second-year Denver coach LeRoy credited his predecessor with assembling a quality team. “This is still the team that Kurt Smitz built,” he said. “Almost all these kids came from him. It’s still in his court – I just drive the van.”

Team Results
1. Denver, 649 1/2; 2. Colorado, 619; 3. Utah, 550; 4. Dartmouth, 546; 5. Middlebury, 529; 6. Vermont, 455; 7. New Mexico, 404; 8. Alas. Anchorage, 334 1/2; 9. Nevada, 303; 10. Northern Mich., 287; 11. New Hampshire, 286; 12. Alas. Fairbanks, 253; 13. Colby, 227; 14. Williams, 223; 15. Bates, 153; 16. Montana St., 145; 17. Michigan Tech, 63; 18. Gust. Adolphus, 59; 19. St. Scholastica, 35; 20. Wis.-Green Bay, 26; 21. Whitman, 14.

Individual champions
Men’s 10-kilometer freestyle: Glenn Randall, Dartmouth, 30:37.3.
Women’s 5-kilometer freestyle cross country: Maria Grevsgaard, Colorado, 17:09.8.
Men’s giant slalom: John Buchar, Denver, 1:39.85.
Women’s giant slalom: Lucie Zikova, Colorado, 1:44.88.
Men’s 20-kilometer classical cross country: Marius Korthauer, Alas. Fairbanks, 1:03:07.6.
Women’s 15-kilometer classical cross country: Maria Grevsgaard, Colorado, 55:04.6.
Men’s slalom: John Buchar, Denver, 1:42.10.
Women’s slalom: Lucie Zikova, Colorado, 1:27.09.

Individual results
Men’s 10-kilometer freestyle
1. Glenn Randall, Dartmouth, 30:37.3; 2. Marius Korthauer, Alas. Fairbanks, 30:48.3; 3. Jesper Ostensen, Colorado, 31:03.2; 4. Sylvan Ellefson, Bates, 31:20.0; 5. Rene Reisshauer, Denver, 31:22.6; 6. Even Sletten, Utah, 31:24.3; 7. John Stene, Denver, 31:26.4; 8. Vahur Teppan, Alas. Fairbanks, 31:27.4; 9. Andy Liebner, Alas. Anchorage, 31:27.6; 10. Snorri Einarsson, Utah, 31:37.2; 11. Kit Richmond, Colorado, 31:43.1; 12. Simon Reissmann, New Mexico, 31:56.8; 13. Simeon Hamilton, Middlebury, 31:58.2; 14. Casey Dyck, New Mexico, 32:01.8; 15. Bjorn Bakken, St. Scholastica, 32:14.1; 16. Martin Banerud, Northern Mich., 32:15.8; 17. Matthew Gelso, Colorado, 32:22.5; 18. Silas Gill, Colby, 32:26.3; 19. Nick Kline, Colby, 32:30.2; 20. Phillip Violett, Northern Mich., 32:30.9; 21. Wyatt Fereday, Colby, 32:36.2; 22. Patrick Johnson, Middlebury, 32:36.7; 23. Juergen Uhl, Vermont, 32:48.8; 24. Ben Fick, Utah, 32:50.2; 25. Tim Reynolds, Middlebury, 32:52.7; 26. Gus Kaeding, Northern Mich., 32:57.6; 27. Raphael Wunderle, Alas. Anchorage, 33:10.9; 28. Santiago Ocariz, Wis.-Green Bay, 33:12.6; 29. Tor-Hakon Hellebostad, New Mexico, 33:12.8; 30. Nils Koons, Dartmouth, 33:16.1; 31. Patrick O'Brien, Dartmouth, 33:39.1; 32. Lutz Preussler, Nevada, 33:40.3; 33. Gunnar Kristiansen, Montana St., 33:41.6; 34. Havard Selseng, Denver, 33:48.2; 35. Max Treinen, Alas. Anchorage, 33:48.8; 36. Jesse Lang, Michigan Tech, 34:43.7; 37. Raymond Sabo, Alas. Fairbanks, 36:05.1; 38. Adam Airoldi, Michigan Tech, 36:09.0.

Women’s 5-kilometer freestyle cross country
1. Maria Grevsgaard, Colorado, 17:09.8; 2. Lenka Palanova, Colorado, 17:34.0; 3. Annelise Bailly, Denver, 17:36.9; 4. Alexa Turzian, Middlebury, 17:58.0; 5. Morgan Smyth, Northern Mich., 18:01.1; 6. Rosie Brennan, Dartmouth, 18:03.3; 7. Laura DeWitt, Northern Mich., 18:06.0; 8. Polina Ermoshina, New Mexico, 18:08.6; 9. Anna Coulter, Alas. Fairbanks, 18:09.1; 10. Antje Maempel, Denver, 18:15.4; 11. Cassidy Edwards, Middlebury, 18:20.7; 12. Susan Dunklee, Dartmouth, 18:21.6; 13. Maria Stuber, Northern Mich., 18:24.5; 14. Kaelin Kiesel, Montana St., 18:29.1; 15. Chelsea Holmes, Nevada, 18:33.6; 16. Annelies Cook, Utah, 18:33.8; 17. Katrina Howe, Vermont, 18:36.2; 18. Sara Schweiger, Utah, 18:37.9; 19. Elsa Sargent, Dartmouth, 18:53.4; 20. Karoline Borgne, Colorado, 19:18.4; 21. Aurelia Korthauer, Alas. Fairbanks, 19:20.4; 22. Paige Brady, Nevada, 19:21.6; 23. Kirsten Johnson, Williams, 19:22.9; 24. Robyn Anderson, Middlebury, 19:23.0; 25. Sarah Wright, New Hampshire, 19:24.6; 26. Zoe Roy, Utah, 19:27.1; 27. Claire Rennie, Montana St., 19:28.6; 28. Elisabeth Habermann, Alas. Fairbanks, 19:32.6; 29. Alice Nelson, Williams, 19:39.8; 30. Jennie Bender, Vermont, 19:58.9; 31. Jenna Klein, Michigan Tech, 20:03.1; 32. Brittany Greer, Alas. Anchorage, 20:09.6; 33. Devon Spika, Whitman, 20:16.8; 34. Kelly Chaudoin, Gust. Adolphus, 20:17.1; 35. Natasha Kullas, New Hampshire, 20:18.8; 36. Kathleen Dewahl, Gust. Adolphus, 20:23.8; 37. Laura Edlund, Gust. Adolphus, 20:25.3; 38. Ashley Pletcher, Wis.-Green Bay, 20:34.0; 39. Melanie Zemp, New Mexico, 20:35.4.

Men’s giant slalom
1. John Buchar, Denver, 1:39.85; 2. Greg Hardy, Vermont, 1:39.87; 3. Erik Gilbert, Vermont, 1:40.43; 4. Francesco Ghedina, Denver, 1:40.70; 5. Alec Tarberry, Middlebury, 1:40.74; 6. Egil Ismar, Alas. Anchorage, 1:40.89; 7. Vince Lebrun-Fortin, Colby, 1:40.93; 8. Eric Mann, Williams, 1:40.95; 9. Greg Berger-Sabbatel, Nevada, 1:41.07; 10. Sean McNamara, New Hampshire, 1:41.11; 11. Scott Veenis, Utah, 1:41.30; 12. Ace Tarberry, Dartmouth, 1:41.59; 13. Thomas Schwab, New Mexico, 1:41.61; 14. Joshua Kernan, Colby, 1:41.66; 15. David Chodounsky, Dartmouth, 1:41.77; 16. Andrew Wagner, Middlebury, 1:41.92; 17. Michael Cremeno, New Hampshire, 1:41.96; 18. Shane Collins, Nevada, 1:42.15; 19. Zachary Brown, Vermont, 1:42.20; 20. Joseph Swensson, Middlebury, 1:42.22; 21. Thomas Zumbrunn, Utah, 1:42.39; 22. Seppi Stiegler, Denver, 1:42.64; 23. William Ford, New Hampshire, 1:42.75; 24. Joshua Bryan, Colorado, 1:43.56; 25. Tague Thorson, Utah, 1:43.59; 26. Drew Roberts, Colorado, 1:43.72; 27. Christoffer Norell, New Mexico, 1:43.97; 28. Robert Dyroff, Williams, 1:44.02; 29. Max Meier-Meitinger, Alas. Anchorage, 1:44.18; 30. Charles Christianson, Williams, 1:46.81; 31. Toby Lamar, Montana St., 1:46.84; 32. Francis Fortin-Houle, Dartmouth, 1:47.25; 33. Cameron Barnes, Nevada, 4:21.38.

Women’s giant slalom
1. Lucie Zikova, Colorado, 1:44.88; 2. Eva Huckova, Utah, 1:45.11; 3. Lyndee Janowiak, Vermont, 1:45.87; 4. Jenni Lathrop, Denver, 1:46.06; 5. Kara Crow, Vermont, 1:47.05; 6. Jilyne McDonald, Vermont, 1:47.15; 7. Malin Hemmingsson, New Mexico, 1:47.23; 8. Courtney Hammond, Dartmouth, 1:47.94; 9. Megan Hughes, Middlebury, 1:48.05; 10. (tie) Kristina Repcinova, Alas. Anchorage, and Molly Ryan, Denver, 1:48.38; 12. Karin Ohlin, New Mexico, 1:48.42; 13. Michelanne Shields, Dartmouth, 1:49.03; 14. Mikaela Grassl, Utah, 1:49.11; 15. Katie Lyons, Nevada, 1:49.14; 16. Allison Empey, Alas. Anchorage, 1:49.42; 17. Jennah Durham, Williams, 1:49.75; 18. Smaranda Munteanu, Alas. Anchorage, 1:50.00; 19. Chirine Njeim, Utah, 1:50.23; 20. Rachel Roosevelt, Colorado, 1:50.25; 21. Chichi Williams, Montana St., 1:50.34; 22. Micaela Holland, Bates, 1:51.16; 23. Kari Falck-Pedersen, Denver, 1:51.84; 24. Tucker Vest-Burton, Middlebury, 1:51.88; 25. Emily Capaul, New Hampshire, 1:51.97; 26. Elizabeth Thompson, Bates, 1:53.24; 27. Emily Sampson, Bates, 1:53.38; 28. Kristen Poehling, Middlebury, 1:53.73; 29. Aileen Farrell, New Hampshire, 1:54.84; 30. Emily Porter, Williams, 1:55.44; 31. Veronique Archambault-Leger, New Hampshire, 2:03.19; 32. Jaana Valimaki, Nevada, 2:18.47; 33. Lisa Perricone, Colorado, 2:30.19; 34. Hayley Jones, Dartmouth, 2:30.90; 35. Dana Breakstone, Colby, 4:36.12.

Men’s 20-kilometer classical cross country
1. Marius Korthauer, Alas. Fairbanks, 1:03:07.6; 2. Kit Richmond, Colorado, 1:03:19.7; 3. Juergen Uhl, Vermont, 1:03:20.7; 4. Martin Banerud, Northern Mich., 1:03:30.6; 5. Vahur Teppan, Alas. Fairbanks, 1:03:37.6; 6. Jesper Ostensen, Colorado, 1:03:40.0; 7. John Stene, Denver, 1:04:22.5; 8. Tor-Hakon Hellebostad, New Mexico, 1:04:23.1; 9. Matthew Gelso, Colorado, 1:04:33.5; 10. Even Sletten, Utah, 1:05:02.4; 11. Glenn Randall, Dartmouth, 1:05:03.3; 12. Ben Fick, Utah, 1:05:18.5; 13. Simeon Hamilton, Middlebury, 1:05:29.4; 14. Phillip Violett, Northern Mich., 1:05:29.9; 15. Andy Liebner, Alas. Anchorage, 1:05:43.5; 16. Raphael Wunderle, Alas. Anchorage, 1:05:44.7; 17. Rene Reisshauer, Denver, 1:05:54.6; 18. Sylvan Ellefson, Bates, 1:05:59.0; 19. Havard Selseng, Denver, 1:05:59.7; 20. Max Treinen, Alas. Anchorage, 1:06:17.8; 21. Snorri Einarsson, Utah, 1:06:30.7; 22. Adam Airoldi, Michigan Tech, 1:06:31.5; 23. Gus Kaeding, Northern Mich., 1:06:53.1; 24. Silas Gill, Colby, 1:07:23.2; 25. Lutz Preussler, Nevada, 1:07:34.3; 26. Simon Reissmann, New Mexico, 1:07:35.0; 27. Jesse Lang, Michigan Tech, 1:07:36.0; 28. Tim Reynolds, Middlebury, 1:07:54.3; 29. Patrick Johnson, Middlebury, 1:07:59.9; 30. Bjorn Bakken, St. Scholastica, 1:08:02.4; 31. Casey Dyck, New Mexico, 1:08:12.5; 32. Patrick O'Brien, Dartmouth, 1:08:39.8; 33. Nick Kline, Colby, 1:09:02.9; 34. Wyatt Fereday, Colby, 1:09:53.4; 35. Nils Koons, Dartmouth, 1:10:59.1; 36. Gunnar Kristiansen, Montana St., 1:11:20.3; 37. Santiago Ocariz, Wis.Green Bay, 1:13:08.9; 38. Raymond Sabo, Alas. Fairbanks, 1:14:56.8.

Women’s 15-kilometer classical cross country
1. Maria Grevsgaard, Colorado, 55:04.6; 2. Polina Ermoshina, New Mexico, 55:59.4; 3. Antje Maempel, Denver, 56:09.5; 4. Elsa Sargent, Dartmouth, 56:47.0; 5. Annelise Bailly, Denver, 57:12.0; 6. Susan Dunklee, Dartmouth, 57:40.0; 7. Rosie Brennan, Dartmouth, 57:46.7; 8. Alexa Turzian, Middlebury, 57:54.2; 9. Chelsea Holmes, Nevada, 57:57.6; 10. Lenka Palanova, Colorado, 58:25.6; 11. Karoline Borgne, Colorado, 58:40.9; 12. Kaelin Kiesel, Montana St., 58:47.3; 13. Laura DeWitt, Northern Mich., 58:52.0; 14. Aurelia Korthauer, Alas. Fairbanks, 59:05.4; 15. Sara Schweiger, Utah, 1:00:00.3; 16. Morgan Smyth, Northern Mich., 1:00:44.8; 17. Annelies Cook, Utah, 1:00:49.6; 18. Laura Edlund, Gust. Adolphus, 1:00:56.6; 19. Cassidy Edwards, Middlebury, 1:01:09.0; 20. Jennie Bender, Vermont, 1:01:18.9; 21. Robyn Anderson, Middlebury, 1:01:22.6; 22. Melanie Zemp, New Mexico, 1:01:25.7; 23. Jenna Klein, Michigan Tech, 1:01:30.6; 24. Zoe Roy, Utah, 1:01:33.8; 25. Kirsten Johnson, Williams, 1:01:47.2; 26. Anna Coulter, Alas. Fairbanks, 1:02:45.8; 27. Kathleen Dewahl, Gust. Adolphus, 1:02:56.5; 28. Katrina Howe, Vermont, 1:03:34.8; 29. Kelly Chaudoin, Gust. Adolphus, 1:03:38.5; 30. Alice Nelson, Williams, 1:03:51.1; 31. Ashley Pletcher, Wis.-Green Bay, 1:03:59.6; 32. Paige Brady, Nevada, 1:04:16.8; 33. Devon Spika, Whitman, 1:04:56.2; 34. Claire Rennie, Montana St., 1:05:39.1; 35. Sarah Wright, New Hampshire, 1:05:42.4; 36. Maria Stuber, Northern Mich., 1:05:44.0; 37. Brittany Greer, Alas. Anchorage, 1:07:12.2; 38. Elisabeth Habermann, Alas. Fairbanks, 1:07:26.7; 39. Natasha Kullas, New Hampshire, 1:12:47.4.

Men’s slalom
1. John Buchar, Denver, 1:42.10; 2. Seppi Stiegler, Denver, 1:42.85; 3. David Chodounsky, Dartmouth, 1:43.15; 4. Charles Christianson, Williams, 1:43.16; 5. Vincent Lebrun-Fortin, Colby, 1:43.18; 6. Andrew Wagner, Middlebury, 1:43.71; 7. Thomas Schwab, New Mexico, 1:43.87; 8. Francesco Ghedina, Denver, 1:43.89; 9. Alec Tarberry, Middlebury, 1:44.11; 10. Greg Hardy, Vermont, 1:44.16; 11. William Ford, New Hampshire, 1:44.28; 12. Cameron Barnes, Nevada, 1:44.86; 13. Sean McNamara, New Hampshire, 1:46.18; 14. Joshua Kernan, Colby, 1:46.26; 15. Egil Ismar, Alas. Anchorage, 1:46.36; 16. Max Meier-Meitinger, Alas. Anchorage, 1:47.06; 17. Toby Lamar, Montana St., 1:47.07; 18. Tor Fodnesbergene, New Mexico, 1:48.02; 19. Ace Tarberry, Dartmouth, 1:48.11; 20. Drew Roberts, Colorado, 1:48.35; 21. Joshua Bryan, Colorado, 1:48.42; 22. Erik Gilbert, Vermont, 1:48.81; 23. Eric Mann, Williams, 1:48.97; 24. Greg Berger-Sabbatel, Nevada, 1:49.07; 25. Joseph Swensson, Middlebury, 1:49.10; 26. Michael Cremeno, New Hampshire, 1:49.92; 27. Thomas Zumbrunn, Utah, 1:56.47; 28. Zachary Brown, Vermont, 1:58.86; 29. Scott Veenis, Utah, 2:16.12; 30. Francis Fortin-Houle, Dartmouth, 2:19.92; 31. Shane Collins, Nevada, 2:25.51.

Women’s Slalom
1. Lucie Zikova, Colorado, 1:27.09; 2. Eva Huckova, Utah, 1:27.31; 3. Jenni Lathrop, Denver, 1:27.51; 4. Mikaela Grassl, Utah, 1:28.00; 5. Jilyne McDonald, Vermont, 1:28.15; 6. Aileen Farrell, New Hampshire, 1:29.04; 7. Katie Lyons, Nevada, 1:29.25; 8. Karin Ohlin, New Mexico, 1:29.28; 9. Lyndee Janowiak, Vermont, 1:29.47; 10. Lisa Perricone, Colorado, 1:29.54; 11. Hayley Jones, Dartmouth, 1:29.59; 12. Rachel Roosevelt, Colorado, 1:29.88; 13. Veronique Archambault-Leger, New Hampshire, 1:30.07; 14. Tucker Vest-Burton, Middlebury, 1:30.27; 15. Allison Empey, Alas. Anchorage, 1:31.22; 16. Emily Capaul, New Hampshire, 1:31.33; 17. Chirine Njeim, Utah, 1:31.85; 18. Molly Ryan, Denver, 1:32.08; 19. Elizabeth Thompson, Bates, 1:33.11; 20. Michelanne Shields, Dartmouth, 1:33.46; 21. Jaana Valimaki, Nevada, 1:33.56; 22. Jennah Durham, Williams, 1:34.10; 23. Courtney Hammond, Dartmouth, 1:34.12; 24. Karine Falck-Pedersen, Denver, 1:34.59; 25. Emily Sampson, Bates, 1:34.68; 26. Micaela Holland, Bates, 1:34.77; 27. Kristen Poehling, Middlebury, 1:35.51; 28. Emily Porter, Williams, 1:36.38; 29. Dana Breakstone, Colby, 1:38.81; 30. Chichi Williams, Montana St., 1:41.14; 31. Megan Hughes, Middlebury, 1:58.45; 32. Kara Crow, Vermont, 1:59.68; 33. Malin Hemmingsson, New Mexico, 2:00.52; 34. Kristina Repcinova, Alas. Anchorage, 2:34.38; 35. Smaranda Munteanu, Alas Anchorage, 2:44.59.