Completed Event: Skiing versus 20K Freestyle (M) on March 14, 2026 , , 1st
Final Score
Skiing
1st
vs 20K Freestyle (M)
The University of Utah Athletics
Ute Skiers Take Third In Second Day At UAA
1/9/2006 12:00 AM | Skiing
Jan. 8, 2006
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SOLDIER HOLLOW, Utah -- The University of Utah ski team dropped a spot in the final day of the cross country events to claim third at the Alaska-Anchorage Invitational. Both teams finished third respectively in the 5/10-km freestyle.
"This was a solid weekend on the cross country side," said head coach Eli Brown. "We skied very strong today, but other teams skied a little stronger. The western schools are stacked with talent this season and we really like the challenge. We gave a solid effort and we have great confident knowing this is going to be a real competitive season."
Denver (282) managed to remain in first-place after a consistent day in the FS, while host Alaska-Anchorage (272) rallied to second. Utah (258) was beatout of the second-place slot to take third, but is hopeful to gain ground on the Pioneers and Seawolves in the alpine events. Colorado (252) held on to fourth and New Mexico (222) remained in fifth to round out the top-five team scores.
With the recent loss of junior Casey Simons, the men's squad is down to only three nordic skiers to compete for team points. The Utes skied close behind Alaska-Anchorage and Denver for the third-place finish, headlined by junior Fabian Figi's 12th-place performance in 28:52.3. Juniors Erik Gjomle (29:10.4) and Jess Kiesel (29:10.5) tallied top scores finishing 13th and 14th.
"This team really rallied together today," said Brown. "It is tough with only three skiers, but they remained focused and really stepped up. All finished 20 seconds of each other, which was exciting. This group is coming together as a team and that is great to see as a coach."
The women's team had yet another impressive day of skiing, placing third behind Colorado and New Mexico. Utah's Nicole Naef notched sixth to spearhead the Ute attack with a time of 16:13.0. Senior Ashley McQueen raced to 11th-place in 16:34.8, while teammate Linda Pettersson finished 15th with a time of 16:44.1. Sara Schweiger (19th) and Anna Sprague (23rd) also competed well for the Utes.
"The women competed well," said Brown. "Nicole was exciting to watch and Ashley skied very well today. They were coming off a first-place finish in the classical, but third is still a great result."
"We have set up the alpine team in a good position and they are racing well," said Brown. "This will be a great opportunity to compete and I think they are going to carry the torch with good results."
Next week, the Ute alpine team will wax them up and compete in the second half of the Alaska-Anchorage Invitational in Park City, Utah. Utah will race in both the slalom and giant slalom. Race times will be all day.
Alaska-Anchorage Team Scores: 1. Denver 282; 2. Alaska-Anchorage 272; 3. Utah 258; 4. Colorado 252; 5. New Mexico 222; 6. Montana State 186; 7. Nevada 119; 8. Western State 118, 9. Whitman 98; 10. Wyoming 52; 11. Boise State 1.
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