UAF's Fordham Wins Freestyle Title, Utes And Buffs Locked In Tight Team Battle

Thursday, March 12, 2026 • by Curtis Snyder

MIDWAY, Utah— RMISA skiers continued to dominate the Nordic races at the 2026 NCAA Ski Championships on Thursday, capturing the majority of the All-America honors in the classic events at Soldier Hollow.

The league earned 16 of the 20 All-America honors awarded on the day, including nine of the 10 first-team selections, while placing skiers on the podium in both races.

Alaska Fairbanks’ Rosie Fordham led the way in the women’s 7.5K classic, skiing away from the field to win the NCAA title in 24:08.0. Utah’s Erica Laven finished second and Denver’s Synne Bollingmo placed third to give the RMISA a sweep of the podium.

In the men’s 7.5K classic, Dartmouth’s John Hagenbuch claimed the national championship in 18:25.3, while RMISA skiers took the other two podium positions as Utah’s Mons Melbye finished second and Alaska Anchorage’s Erling Bjoernstad was third.

Through four races, the team title race has developed into a tight battle between host Utah and Colorado. The Utes lead the championship standings with 299.5 points, while Colorado sits second with 288 points. Denver remains in contention in third place with 208.5 points.

Utah has won three of the four races contested so far, while Colorado has finished second in all four events through the midpoint of the championships. With two days remaining — Friday’s alpine slalom and Saturday’s freestyle races — the standings remain fluid, especially with the potential for movement in the slalom events.

The championships continue Friday with the alpine slalom races at Utah Olympic Park before concluding Saturday with the 20K freestyle races at Soldier Hollow.

TEAM STANDINGS
1. Utah 299.5; 2. Colorado 288; 3. Denver 208.5; 4. Montana State 178.5; 5. Middlebury 153; 6. Dartmouth 152; 7. Alaska Anchorage 129; 8. Vermont 109; 9. Alaska Fairbanks 93.5; 10. New Hampshire 75; 11. Colby 53; 12. Nevada 51; Northern Michigan 51; 14. Westminster 44; 15. Michigan Tech 36.5; 16. St. Lawrence 17.5; 17. St. Michael’s 12; 18. Boston College 11; 19. Harvard 10; 20. Williams 8; 21. St. Scholastica 2; 22. Bowdoin 1.

MEN'S 7.5K CLASSIC
1. John Hagenbuch, Dartmouth, 18:25.3; 2. Mons Melbye, Utah, 18:31.0; 3. Erling Bjoernstad, Alaska Anchorage, 18:48.3; 4. Storm Pedersen, Colorado, 18:50.3; 5. Corbin Carpenter, Alaska Anchorage, 18:54.5; 6. Zachary Jayne, Utah, 18:57.9; 7. Eemil Juntunen, Denver, 19:05.6; 8. Jakob Moch, Colorado, 19:10.0; 9. Johannes Flaaten, Colorado, 19:10.4; 10. Luke Fricker, Northern Michigan, 19:12.6.

WOMEN'S 7.5K CLASSIC
1. Rosie Fordham, Alaska Fairbanks, 24:08.0; 2. Erica Laven, Utah, 25:11.0; 3. Synne Bollingmo, Denver, 25:27.7; 4. Tilde Baangman, Colorado, 25:32.1; 5. Witta Walcher, Utah, 25:56.1; 6. Astri Lunde, Colorado, 26:14.6; 7. Marit Flora, Alaska Anchorage, 26:15.0; 8. Ava Thurston, Dartmouth, 26:35.5; 9. Sofia Pedersen, Utah, 26:50.7; 10. Shea Brams, Middlebury, 26:52.4.