Completed Event: Skiing versus 20K Freestyle (M) on March 8, 2025 , , 1st
Final Score
Skiing
1st
vs 20K Freestyle (M)
Sunday, January 5
Anchorage, Alaska / Kincaid Park
University of Utah
at
20K Classic (M)
Erica Lavén, left, finished second in today's 20K classic race.
Lavén Leads Utes in 20K Classic Mass Start
1/5/2025 6:45 PM | Skiing
Freshman finishes second in women’s race to cap off opening Nordic weekend
ANCHORAGE, Alaska – Utah freshman Erica Lavén battled Kendall Kramer of Alaska Fairbanks from start to finish, ultimately finishing second in the women's 20K classic mass start on Sunday at Kincaid Park. The race capped off the Nordic half of the Alaska Anchorage Invitational and was held within the larger U.S. National Championships.
The Utes were a little shorthanded for today's races, having just three men and three women in the respective lineups. The team wrapped up the day second in the team standings, now with 334 points. Denver is currently in the team lead, seven points ahead of the Utes (341).
"Erica Lavén had a great race today," said director of skiing Fredrik Landstedt. "She battled Kendall Kramer all the way and just lost out by a yard. Selma Nevin and Celine Mayer also had great races today. In the men's race, Brian Bushey broke a pole and crashed on the first lap. He had to battle to get back towards the front."
Men's Race
Walker Hall was the top finisher for Utah with a fifth-place time of 51:40.4. Brian Bushey tabbed sixth (51:46.8), with the Hall-Bushey duo both landing in the top-15 in the overall U.S. Nationals field. Zachary Jayne rounded on the men's lineup for Utah, taking 14th (54:19.7) in the RMISA field and 29th overall.
Hall was in the top-six among the RMISA competitors through the entire race, getting as high as second at the 10K split. Bushey fell from second to ninth at the 10K split, but battled to climb back into the top-four after three laps.
Women's Race
Lavén and Kramer led the race field for the majority of the event, going neck-and-neck with each other on the 20K course. As the final lap hit the home stretch, Lavén changed tracks for the final 75 meters to make one last push. She ultimately was a ski length short of Kramer with a time of 58:19.6, about two seconds behind the top spot.
Fellow freshman Selma Nevin turned in a top-five performance (1:00:06.5) while Celine Mayer (1:01:06.1) placed ninth in the RMISA field.
"Today was a really fun and hard race," said Lavén. "It was fast from the beginning. It was a fun battle between me and Kendall. I felt like I had it at the end but she was very strong today, especially in the double pole—so didn't have much left to do something at the end. But it was a really fun race!"
Nevin fell no lower than sixth for the entire 20K before taking fifth in the mass start. Mayer was sixth at the 10K split.
Next Up | Full Schedule
Today's race began stretch of four straight days of racing for the Utah Ski Team, with the torch now being passed off to alpine from Monday through Wednesday. An RMISA qualifier slalom race will kick off the alpine season on Monday at Loveland Ski Area, before the Utes take part in the Denver Invitational on Tuesday and Wednesday.
The Utah Nordic squad rests after today's race and will return to competition on Saturday and Sunday, January 18-19, hosting the Utah Invitational. The Nordic portion of the meet will be held at Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, Utah.
Follow the Utah Ski Team
Follow the Utes on social media @utahskiteam.
Official Mobile App of Utah Athletics – Utah 360
The official mobile app of Utah Athletics is Utah 360. Download it today for access to news and information, schedules, rosters, stats and behind-the-scenes videos directly from your mobile device. The app is available in both the Apple Store (download) and Google Play (download). Add it today, access your game tickets and download them to your smartphone's wallet to make yourself game-day ready!
The Utes were a little shorthanded for today's races, having just three men and three women in the respective lineups. The team wrapped up the day second in the team standings, now with 334 points. Denver is currently in the team lead, seven points ahead of the Utes (341).
"Erica Lavén had a great race today," said director of skiing Fredrik Landstedt. "She battled Kendall Kramer all the way and just lost out by a yard. Selma Nevin and Celine Mayer also had great races today. In the men's race, Brian Bushey broke a pole and crashed on the first lap. He had to battle to get back towards the front."
Men's Race
Walker Hall was the top finisher for Utah with a fifth-place time of 51:40.4. Brian Bushey tabbed sixth (51:46.8), with the Hall-Bushey duo both landing in the top-15 in the overall U.S. Nationals field. Zachary Jayne rounded on the men's lineup for Utah, taking 14th (54:19.7) in the RMISA field and 29th overall.
Hall was in the top-six among the RMISA competitors through the entire race, getting as high as second at the 10K split. Bushey fell from second to ninth at the 10K split, but battled to climb back into the top-four after three laps.
Women's Race
Lavén and Kramer led the race field for the majority of the event, going neck-and-neck with each other on the 20K course. As the final lap hit the home stretch, Lavén changed tracks for the final 75 meters to make one last push. She ultimately was a ski length short of Kramer with a time of 58:19.6, about two seconds behind the top spot.
Fellow freshman Selma Nevin turned in a top-five performance (1:00:06.5) while Celine Mayer (1:01:06.1) placed ninth in the RMISA field.
"Today was a really fun and hard race," said Lavén. "It was fast from the beginning. It was a fun battle between me and Kendall. I felt like I had it at the end but she was very strong today, especially in the double pole—so didn't have much left to do something at the end. But it was a really fun race!"
Nevin fell no lower than sixth for the entire 20K before taking fifth in the mass start. Mayer was sixth at the 10K split.
Next Up | Full Schedule
Today's race began stretch of four straight days of racing for the Utah Ski Team, with the torch now being passed off to alpine from Monday through Wednesday. An RMISA qualifier slalom race will kick off the alpine season on Monday at Loveland Ski Area, before the Utes take part in the Denver Invitational on Tuesday and Wednesday.
The Utah Nordic squad rests after today's race and will return to competition on Saturday and Sunday, January 18-19, hosting the Utah Invitational. The Nordic portion of the meet will be held at Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, Utah.
Follow the Utah Ski Team
Follow the Utes on social media @utahskiteam.
Official Mobile App of Utah Athletics – Utah 360
The official mobile app of Utah Athletics is Utah 360. Download it today for access to news and information, schedules, rosters, stats and behind-the-scenes videos directly from your mobile device. The app is available in both the Apple Store (download) and Google Play (download). Add it today, access your game tickets and download them to your smartphone's wallet to make yourself game-day ready!
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