Members of the Utah ski team circle their national championship trophy for a cheer at the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
The Utah Utes have won their third consecutive NCAA skiing national championship.
Heading into the final day of competition Saturday at Soldier Hollow in Midway, Utah, the Utes held a comfortable lead of 27.5 points over Vermont, but they put an exclamation point on things in the two freestyle competitions and cruised to the win, finishing the week with 578 points to Vermont’s 511.5.
This marks the continuation of an incredible run for the Utes, who also won the title in 2019 and 2021. Additionally, they were leading the competition in 2020 before it was stopped partway through at the beginning of the pandemic.
It is the program’s 15th national title overall.
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Utah’s Sophia Laukli and teammate Novie McCabe celebrate finishing 1st and 2nd in the 15 km freestyle on the final day of the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Members of the Utah ski team celebrate their national championship at the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Utah’s Sophia Laukli holds up a Utah flag as she cross the finish line in first place in the 15 km freestyle of the final day of the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Utah’s Samuel Hendry crosses the finish line in second place in the 20 km freestyle on the final day of the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Utah’s Samuel Hendry crosses the finish line in second place in the 20 km freestyle on the final day of the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Utah’s Samuel Hendry and other college athletes compete in the 20 km freestyle on the final day of the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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University of Vermont’s Ben Ogden leads the college men out at the start of the 20 km freestyle on the final day of the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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College women athletes compete in the 15 km freestyle of the final day of the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. The University of Utah won. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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University of Vermont’s Ben Ogden leads the college men as they compete in the 20 km freestyle on the final day of the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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College women athletes compete in the 15 km freestyle of the final day of the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. The University of Utah won. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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The women begin their 15 km race on the final day of the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. The University of Utah won. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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College athletes compete in the 15 km freestyle of the final day of the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. The University of Utah won. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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College athletes compete in the 15 km freestyle of the final day of the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. The University of Utah won. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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The University of Utah’s Sophia Laukli works her way up a hill on her way to a win in the 15 km freestyle on the final day of the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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The University of Utah’s Sophia Laukli, navigates a turn on her way to a win in the 15 km freestyle on the final day of the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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University of Vermont’s Ben Ogden leads the college men as they compete in the 20 km freestyle on the final day of the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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The top three men in the 20 km freestyle, Ben Ogden of the University of Vermont, center, Samuel Hendry, the University of Utah, left, and JC Schoonmaker of the University of Alaska Anchorage pose for photos on the awards platform of the final day of the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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University of Vermont’s Ben Ogden celebrates his first place finish in the 20 km freestyle on the final day of the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Utah’s Sophia Laukli poses for photos after crossing the finish line in first place in the 15 km freestyle of the final day of the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Utah’s Novie McCabe crosses the finish line in second place in the 15 km freestyle of the final day of the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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College men compete in the 20 km freestyle on final day of the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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College men compete in the 20 km freestyle on final day of the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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College men compete in the 20 km freestyle on final day of the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Utah’s Sophia Laukli celebrates with friends and fans after winning the 15 km freestyle on the final day of the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Members of the Utah ski team celebrate their national championship at the NCAA ski championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Saturday, March 12, 2022. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
On Saturday in the final race of the championships — the women’s 15K freestyle — the Utes dominated as Sophia Laukli took first and Novie McCabe was second.
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Laukli’s win gave the Utes 40 points and McCabe’s runner-up finish provided 37, giving the team the convincing win.
It was the only time all week that one team had the top two finishers in a race (Sydney Palmer-Leger took eighth to add to the finish for the Utes).
Earlier in the day in the men’s 20K freestyle, Samuel Hendry took second for the Utes to help them get off to a good start on the day.
For the week, the Utes got at least one top three finish in six of eight races, and Olympians Laukli and McCabe accounted for the two instances when Utah had two in the top three, as McCabe won the women’s 5K classical on Thursday and Laukli took third.
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