Despite trailing Vermont by two points heading into the final day of competition and not winning a meet the entire season, Denver captured its second consecutive National Collegiate championship in the sport – and 20th title overall – March 14 at Bates.

Denver Nordic coach David Steward said the team faced tough competition all year, but in the end the Pioneers showed that they were meant to be champions – on the slopes and in the classroom.

“It was an improbable and unlikely win for the team this year,” Stewart said. “We had a solid team, but I don't think anybody looked at us in the beginning of the year and said, ‘They’re the team to beat.’ A couple other teams are really strong. But the team came here and just performed extremely well, to be honest.

“A lot of our athletes are taking their final exams right now, proctored here at the championship. This is a team that has the best GPA of any sports team at our university. It’s just a great group of individuals, and they just could not have performed any better here.”

After the competition start was delayed a day due to hazardous weather conditions, Pioneers sophomore Antje Maempel won two individual Nordic titles in three days – the 15K Free Technique Mass Start and the 5K Classical Technique Race. In both races, Maempel barely beat Colorado’s Alexia Turzian, the second-place finisher. Only half a second separated the two skiers in the longer race.

“She’s obviously an outstanding skier, and she just peaked at the right time for the championships,” said Stewart. “We design our training to be at our best for the NCAA championships, so it’s not surprising that she’s racing at her best here. To have her win was just the icing on the cake.”

Boosted by Turzian’s strong performances and a top finish from sophomore Vegard Kjoelhamar in the 20K Freestyle, Colorado finished second in the team standings, marking the 13th time Denver and Colorado have gone 1-2 on the NCAA podium – including at the 2008 championships. New Mexico was only half point behind the Buffaloes to claim third place.

Buffs coach Richard Rokis said that while second place wasn’t what the team had hoped for, a variety of mishaps – including a disqualification (a top Nordic skier catching a ski tip on a gate) – gave him reason to look forward to a better performance next year.

“With the individual results and outstanding but inconsistent performance by our team, we have a great outlook for next year,” he said. “We’re returning most of the athletes for next season and we need to do very little to maintain a team capable of winning. It’s not too early to start thinking right now about next year’s championships and we will be investing all our work and ourselves into it, both mentally and physically.”

Team results

1. Denver, 659; 2. Colorado, 602 1/2; 3. New Mexico, 602; 4. Alas. Anchorage, 584; 5. Vermont, 573; 6. Utah, 568; 7. Dartmouth, 555; 8. Middlebury, 426; 9. New Hampshire, 394; 10. Nevada, 284; 11. Colby, 209; 12. Northern Mich., 195; 13. Bates, 175; 14. Williams, 147 1/2; 15. (tie) Alas. Fairbanks and St. Lawrence, 122; 17. Michigan Tech, 121; 18. Montana St., 85; 19. Wis.-Green Bay, 35; 20. St. Michael’s, 31; 21. Gust. Adolphus, 17; 22. St. Scholastica, 13.

Individual champions

Men’s 10-kilometer classical cross country: Juergen Uhl, Vermont, 24:14.9.
Women’s 5-kilometer classical country: Antje Maempel, Denver, 13:52.4.
Men’s giant slalom: David Donaldson, Vermont, 2:30.24.

Women’s giant slalom: Lindsay Cone, St. Lawrence, 2:35.70.
Men’s 20-kilometer freestyle: Vegard Kjoelhamar, Colorado, 44:07.9.

Women’s 15-kilometer freestyle: Antje Maempel, Denver, 38:35.0.

Men’s slalom: Gabriel Rivas, Colorado, 1:36.69.
Women’s slalom: Malin Hemmingsson, New Mexico, 1:42.36.

Complete individual results

Men’s 10-kilometer classical cross country

1. Juergen Uhl, Vermont, 24:14.9; 2. Raphael Wunderle, Alas. Anchorage, 24:25.5; 3. Jesper Ostensen, Colorado, 24:29.0; 4. Harald Loevensk, Denver, 24:43.7; 5. Franz Bernstein, Vermont, 24:44.4; 6. Vegard Kjoelhamar, Colorado, 24:45.4; 7. Simeon Hamilton, Middlebury, 24:49.5; 8. Martin Kaas, New Mexico, 24:56.4; 9. Tor-hokon Hellebostad, New Mexico, 25:01.6; 10. Even Sletten, Utah, 25:04.7; 11. Matthew Gelso, Colorado, 25:07.4; 12. Mike Hinkley, Denver, 25:08.5; 13. Max Treinen, Alas. Anchorage, 25:11.8; 14. Glen Randall, Dartmouth, 25:16.4; 15. Martin Banerud, Northern Mich., 25:16.5; 16. Lex Treinen, Alas. Anchorage, 25:18.4; 17. Oskar Lund, Michigan Tech, 25:21.8; 18. Didrik Smith, Utah, 25:26.8; 19. Jonathan Pluvin, Nevada, 25:28.4; 20. Patrick O’Brien, Dartmouth, 25:30.4; 21. Sylvan Ellefson, Bates, 25:34.4; 22. Daniel Clark, Denver, 25:37.2; 23. Patrick Johnson, Middlebury, 25:37.9; 24. Simon Reissmann, New Mexico, 25:38.8; 25. Phil Violett, Northern Mich., 25:40.5; 26. Oyvind Watterdal, Alas. Fairbanks, 25:43.9; 27. Santiago Ocariz, Wis.-Green Bay, 25:45.0; 28. Dimitri Luthi, Wilmington, 25:46.1; 29. Petter Sjulstad, Michigan Tech, 25:50.3; 30. Bernhard Roenning, Montana St., 25:53.8; 31. Jesse Lang, Michigan Tech, 25:58.9; 32. Ben Fick, Utah, 26:03.0; 32. Nils Koons, Dartmouth, 26:03.0; 34. Lutz Preussler, Nevada, 26:27.3; 35. Justin Singleton, Northern Mich., 26:28.6; 36. Samuel Evans-Brown, Bates, 26:45.7; 37. Tyler Kjorstad, St. Scholastica, 26:47.5; 38. Ryan Scott, Montana St.,26:50.5; 39. Anders Folleraas, Montana St., 27:18.6.

Women’s 5-kilometer classical cross country

1. Antje Maempel, Denver, 13:52.4; 2. Polina Ermoshina, New Mexico, 13:58.9; 3. Sadie Bjornsen, Alas. Anchorage, 14:09.8; 4. Rosie Brennan, Dartmouth, 14:14.2; 5. Maria Grevsgaard, Colorado, 14:22.3; 6. Caitlin Patterson, Vermont, 14:25.8; 7. Alexa Turzian, Colorado, 14:28.0; 8. Annelise Bailly, Denver, 14:28.3; 9. Sophie Caldwell, Dartmouth, 14:29.8; 10. Jennie Bender, Vermont, 14:33.0; 11. Elise Moody-Roberts, Middlebury, 14:38.8; 12. Kate Dolan, Denver, 14:49.7; 13. Theresia Schnurr, Alas. Fairbanks, 14:50.0; 14. Lucy Garrec, Colby, 14:51.9; 15. Marie Helen Soderman, Northern Mich., 14:56.6; 16. Annelies Cook, Utah, 14:56.9; 17. Laura DeWitt, Northern Mich., 15:04.6; 18. Hannah Dreissigacker, Dartmouth, 15:05.3; 19. Zoey Roy, Utah, 15:07.9; 20. Sara Schweiger, Utah, 15:10.8; 21. Julia Pierson, Alas. Fairbanks, 15:11.9; 22. Natalie Ruppertsburger, Bates, 15:12.2; 23. Laura Rombach, Alas. Anchorage, 15:14.6; 24. Jaime Bronga, Alas. Anchorage, 15:14.8; 25. Sarah Wright, New Hampshire, 15:17.2; 26. Chelsea Holmes, Nevada, 15:18.9; 27. Robyn Anderson, Middlebury, 15:19.1; 28. Ingrid Fjeldheim, Northern Mich., 15:26.3; 29. Kristin Ronnestrand, Nevada, 15:26.7; 30. Kristen Bednar, St. Lawrence, 15:29.0; 31. Kaelin Kiesel, Montana St., 15:29.1; 32. Kathleen Maynard, Colby, 15:29.4; 33. Kelly Chaudoin, Gust. Adolphus, 15:29.7; 34. Claire Rennie, Montana St., 15:31.5; 35. Carolyn Freeman, Wis.-Green Bay, 15:32.7; 36. Elizabeth Quinley, Michigan Tech, 15:35.0; 37. Jenna Klein, Michigan Tech, 15:41.1; 38. Anna Coulter, Alas. Fairbanks, 16:09.2; 39. Jill Smith, Michigan Tech, 16:18.9.

Men’s Giant Slalom

1. David Donaldson, Vermont, 2:30.24; 2. Leif Haugen, Denver, 2:30.82; 3. Andrew Wagner, Middlebury, 2:33.28; 4. Eric Mann, Williams, 2:33.55; 5. Nick Cohee, Utah, 2:33.77; 6. Michael Cremeno, New Hampshire, 2:33.87; 7. Joshua Kernan, Colby, 2:34.10; 8. (tie) Greg Berger-Sabbatel, Nevada, and William Ford, New Hampshire, 2:34.19; 10. Drew Roberts, Colorado, 2:34.20; 11. Scott Vennis, Utah, 2:34.22; 12. Thomas Zumbrunn, Utah, 2:34.25; 13. Rusty Heise, Dartmouth, 2:34.31; 14. Erik Gilbert, Vermont, 2:34.35; 15. John Buchar, Denver, 2:34.36; 16. Sean McNamara, New Hampshire, 2:34.59; 17. Marsh Gooding, Vermont, 2:34.71; 18. Gabriel Rivas, Colorado, 2:35.43; 19. Bobby Poehling, Middlebury, 2:35.81; 20. Thomas Schwab, New Mexico, 2:35.88; 21. Halfdan Falkum-Hansen, Alas. Anchorage, 2:35.90; 22. Egil Ismar, Alas. Anchorage, 2:36.48; 23. Shane Collins, Nevada, 2:36.50; 24. Ian Lochhead, Denver, 2:37.05; 25. James Andersen, St. Lawrence, 2:37.32; 26. Vincent Lebrun-Fortin, Colby, 2:38.41; 27. Luke McLaughry, Dartmouth, 2:39.44; 28. Robert Dyroff, Williams, 2:39.46; 29. Jonathan Hverve, Alas. Anchorage, 2:40.42; 30. Braden Harden, St. Michael’s, 2:41.15; 31. Martin Harris, Nevada, 2:44.79; 32. Petter Brenna, New Mexico, 2:50.06; 33. Nikolai Herlofson Finne, New Mexico, 3:01.78; 34. Stefan Hughes, Colorado, 4:14.66; Ace Tarberry, Dartmouth did not finish.

Women’s Giant Slalom

1. Lindsay Cone, St. Lawrence, 2:35.70; 2. Estelle Pecherand, New Mexico, 2:36.30; 3. Eva Huckova, Utah, 2:36.39; 4. Alexandra Parker, Alas. Anchorage, 2:37.00; 5. Stefanie Demetz, New Mexico, 2:37.12; 6. Courtney Hammond, Dartmouth, 2:37.21; 7. Jilyne McDonald, Vermont, 2:37.26; 8. Aileen Farrell, New Hampshire, 2:37.29; 9. Lyndee Janowiak, Vermont, 2:37.34; 10. Veronique Archambault-Leger, New Hampshire, 2:37.59; 11. Malin Hemmingsson, New Mexico, 2:37.64; 12. Mattie Ford, Middlebury, 2:38.01; 13. Mikaela Grassl, Utah, 2:38.20; 14. Chirine Njeim, Utah, 2:38.50; 15. Nicole Dvorak, Middlebury, 2:38.82; 16. Cynthia Tessier, New Hampshire, 2:39.27; 17. Kelsey Roddick, Dartmouth, 2:39.34; 18. Elizabeth Thompson, Bates, 2:39.40; 19. Ida Dillingoeen, Denver, 2:39.51; 20. Katie Hartman, Colorado, 2:39.53; 21. Lisa Perricone, Colorado, 2:39.55; 22. Carolina Nordh, Colorado, 2:39.65; 23. Natasha Woodworth, Middlebury, 2:40.01; 24. Emily Porter, Williams, 2:41.89; 25. Molly Ryan, Denver, 2:41.92; 26. Christine Roberts, Dartmouth, 2:42.19; 27. Emily Colin, Colby, 2:42.65; 28. Lacy Saugstad, Alas. Anchorage, 2:42.81; 29. Amy Harris, Nevada, 2:42.95; 30. Taryn O’Flynn, Nevada, 2:43.68; 31. Micaela Holland, Bates, 2:44.52; 32. Claire Abbe, Denver, 2:44.95; 33. Sandra MacDonald, Alas. Anchorage, 3:03.10; 34. Katie Lyons, Nevada, 3:40.85; 35. Megan Ryley, Vermont, 4:19.44.

Men’s 20-kilometer freestyle

1. Vegard Kjoelhamar, Colorado, 44:07.9; 2. Lex Treinen, Alas. Anchorage, 44:27.4; 3. Raphael Wunderle, Alas. Anchorage, 44:27.9; 4. Martin Kaas, New Mexico, 44:28.4; 5. Max Treinen, Alas. Anchorage, 44:29.9; 6. Mike Hinkley, Denver, 44:39.0; 7. Patrick O’Brien, Dartmouth, 44:42.6; 8. Jesse Lang, Michigan Tech, 44:43.2; 9. Simeon Hamilton, Middlebury, 44:44.7; 10. Simon Reissmann, New Mexico, 44:45.1; 11. Martin Banerud, Northern Mich., 44:45.3; 12. Sylvan Ellefson, Bates, 45:03.5; 13. Even Sletten, Utah, 45:09.5; 14. Nils Koons, Dartmouth, 45:09.9; 15. Patrick Johnson, Middlebury, 45:17.3; 16. Didrik Smith, Utah, 45:23.4; 17. Franz Bernstein, Vermont, 45:30.3; 18. Glen Randall, Dartmouth, 45:35.9; 19. Herald Loevensk, Denver, 45:42.4; 20. Matthew Gelso, Colorado, 45:45.1; 21. Oskar Lund, Michigan Tech, 45:45.3; 22. Ben Fick, Utah, 45:54.1; 23. Tor-Hokon Hellebostad, New Mexico, 45:54.4; 24. Daniel Clark, Denver, 46:10.5; 25. Lutz Preussler, Nevada, 46:24.2; 26. Juergen Uhl, Vermont, 46:28.8; 27. Samuel Evans–Brown, Bates, 46:34.6; 28. Jonathan Pluvin, Nevada, 47:03.3; 29. Santiago Ocariz, Wis.-Green Bay, 47:23.8; 30. Tyler Kjorstad, St. Scholastica, 47:26.5; 31. Jesper Ostensen, Colorado, 47:28.1; 32. Phil Violett, Northern Mich., 47:33.8; 33. Dimitri Luthi, Williams, 47:41.6; 34. Anders Folleraas, Montana St., 47:51.4; 35. Bernhard Ronnin, Montana St., 48:06.0; 36. Petter Sjulstad, Michigan Tech, 48:09.4; 37. Ryan Scott, Montana St., 48:57.7; 38. Justin Singleton, Northern Mich., 49:04.2; 39. Oyvind Watterdal, Alas. Fairbanks, 53:35.2.

Women’s 15-kilometer freestyle

1. Antje Maempel, Denver, 38:35.0; 2. Alexa Turzian, Colorado, 38:35.5; 3. Rosie Brennan, Dartmouth, 38:41.2; 4. Annelise Bailly, Denver, 38:43.4; 5. Sophie Caldwell, Dartmouth, 38:49.8; 6. Maria Moe Grevsgaard, Colorado, 39:00.5; 7. Caitlin Patterson, Vermont, 39:10.9; 8. Polina Ermoshina, New Mexico, 39:15.4; 9. Annelies Cook, Utah, 39:18.3; 10. Hannah Dreissigacker, Dartmouth, 39:20.3; 11. Laura Rombach, Alas. Anchorage, 39:51.5; 12. Jaime Bronga, Alas. Anchorage, 39:52.4; 13. Claire Rennie, Montana St., 39:53.1; 14. Sarah Wright, New Hampshire, 39:56.1; 15. Elise Moody–Roberts, Middlebury, 40:00.1; 16. Chelsea Holmes, Nevada, 40:13.5; 17. Laura DeWitt, Northern Mich., 40:17.7; 18. Julia Pierson, Alas. Fairbanks, 40:22.8; 19. Sadie Bjornsen, Alas. Anchorage, 40:27.5; 20. Marie Helen Soderman, Northern Mich., 40:29.9; 21. Anna Coulter, Alas. Fairbanks, 40:31.4; 22. Theresia Schnurr, Alas. Fairbanks, 40:32.5; 23. Jennie Bender, Vermont, 40:48.9; 24. Kaelin Kiesel, Montana St., 40:49.4; 25. Sara Schweiger, Utah, 40:49.6; 26. Robyn Anderson, Midddlebury, 40:50.8; 27. Lucy Garrec, Colby, 40:56.6; 28. Kate Dolan, Denver, 41:00.0; 29. Natalie Ruppertsburger, Bates, 41:00.3; 30. Kelly Chaudoin, Gust. Adolphus, 41:04.3; 31. Zoe Roy, Utah, 41:07.7; 32. Ingrid Fjeldheim, Northern Mich., 42:01.1; 33. Jenna Klein, Michigan Tech, 42:01.3; 34. Carolyn Freeman, Wis.-Green Bay, 42:01.6; 35. Jill Smith, Michigan Tech, 42:13.2; 36. Kristen Bednar, St. Lawrence, 42:13.5; 37. Kathleen Maynard, Colby, 42:22.3; 38. Elizabeth Quinley, Michigan Tech, 43:47.8.

Men’s Slalom

1. Gabriel Rivas, Colorado, 1:36.69; 2. Petter Brenna, New Mexico, 1:37.50; 3. Leif Haugen, Denver, 1:37.70; 4. Joshua Kernan, Colby, 1:38.10; 5. Sean McNamara, New Hampshire, 1:38.16; 6. Vincent Lebrun-Fortin, Colby, 1:38.25; 7. Greg Berger-Sabbatel, Nevada, 1:38.30; 8. Andrew Wagner, Middlebury, 1:39.45; 9. William Ford, New Hampshire, 1:39.60; 10. Stefan Hughes, Colorado, 1:39.71; 11. John Buchar, Denver, 1:39.73; 12. Erik Gilbert, Vermont, 1:40.39; 13. Scott Vennis, Utah, 1:40.50; 14. (tie) Eric Mann, Williams, and Drew Roberts, Colorado, 1:40.94; 16. Halfdan Falkum-Hansen, Alas. Anchorage, 1:41.16; 17. Thomas Schwab, New Mexico, 1:41.17; 18. Robert Dyroff, Williams, 1:41.37; 19. Braden Harden, St. Michael’s, 1:42.58; 20. Ace Tarberry, Dartmouth, 1:43.48; 21. David Donaldson, Vermont, 1:45.59; 22. Bobby Poehling, Middlebury, 1:47.81; 23. Marsh Gooding, Vermont, 1:47.87; 24. Thomas Zumbrunn, Utah, 1:48.11; 25. Ian Lochhead, Denver, 1:48.75; 26. Michael Cremeno, New Hampshire, 1:53.28; 27. Luke McLaughry, Dartmouth, 1:56.18; 28. James Andersen, St. Lawrence, 1:56.63; 29. Egil Ismar, Alas. Anchorage, 2:01.25; 30. Martin Harris, Nevada, 2:05.30; 31. Nikolai Herlofson Finne, New Mexico, 2:14.43; 32. Nick Cohee, Utah, 57.46 2:21.55; 33. Rusty Heise, Dartmouth, 2:21.85; 34. Shane Collins, Nevada, 2:24.55.

Women’s Slalom

1. Malin Hemmingsson, New Mexico, 1:42.36; 2. Estelle Pecherand, New Mexico, 1:43.58; 3. Jilyne McDonald, Vermont, 1:44.29; 4. Megan Ryley, Vermont, 1:44.36; 5. Aileen Farrell, New Hampshire, 1:44.74; 6. Courtney Hammond, Dartmouth, 1:45.30; 7. (tie) Veronique Archambault-Leger, New Hampshire, and Alexandra Parker, Alas. Anchorage, 1:45.41; 9. Lindsay Cone, St. Lawrence, 1:45.61; 10. Eva Huckova, Utah, 1:45.62; 11. Elizabeth Thompson, Bates, 1:45.83; 12. Stefanie Demetz, New Mexico, 1:46.23; 13. Mattie Ford, Middlebury, 1:46.27; 14. Ida Dillingoeen, Denver, 1:46.78; 15. Mikaela Grassl, Utah, 1:46.80; 16. Lisa Perricone, Colorado, 1:46.89; 17. Claire Abbe, Denver, 1:47.20; 18. Micaela Holland, Bates, 1:47.93; 19. Taryn O’Flynn, Nevada, 1:49.05; 20. Chirine Njeim, Utah, 1:49.06; 21. Emily Colin, Colby, 1:49.11; 22. Nicole Dvorak, Middlebury, 1:49.45; 23. Amy Harris, Nevada, 1:49.99; 24. Cynthia Tessier, New Hampshire, 1:50.01; 25. Molly Ryan, Denver, 1:50.95; 26. Lacy Saugstad, Alas. Anchorage, 1:51.69; 27. Christine Roberts, Dartmouth, 1:52.02; 28. Emily Porter, Williams, 1:55.13; 29. Carolina Nordh, Colorado, 1:55.19; 30. Sandra MacDonald, Alas. Anchorage, 1:55.41; 31. Lyndee Janowiak, Vermont, 2:04.46; 32. Kelsey Roddick, Dartmouth, 2:06.67; 33. Katie Lyons, Nevada, 2:17.97; 34. Natasha Woodworth, Middlebury, 2:34.61.