As the skiers came down the final stretch of the men’s 20K freestyle classic, Utah’s Mons Melbye knew he had to make his move.

Well ahead of the other competition, it was going to be a photo finish between Melbye and the leader, Dartmouth’s John Steel Hagenbuch. Melbye was right behind him as the two pushed towards the finish line, and on one of the final turns, he shot ahead of Hagenbuch.

The two were nearly stride for stride at the end, but Melbye was just 0.4 seconds faster, capturing first place in the event with a time of 46:14.6.

“Mons has been unbelievable all year and he’s a super freshman. I mean, very hard to beat towards the end of the races. I mean, he skied against one of the best college skiers ever in John Hagenbuch and was able to beat him in the end,” said Utah director of skiing Fredrik Landstedt.

“And Mons is a freshman. So we’re unbelievably lucky to have him here and I think he can do big things in the future for us as well.”

Melbye’s first-place finish helped Utah secure the 2026 NCAA skiing national championship on home snow — the Utes’ sixth title in the last seven years — even if he didn’t realize it at first.

“I had no clue where we were standing with other guys, but yeah, I was happy to do my part for the team. We were really tight with (Colorado), but yeah, we ended up on top and I’m glad to be a part of the team who succeeded,” Melbye said.

Utah’s Zachary Jayne finished in ninth place with a time of 46:28.7, while Max Kluck placed No. 22 with a time of 49:13.7. The Utah’s men’s side had an event score of 71, second behind the University of Alaska Fairbanks, which placed first in the men’s 20K freestyle.

“They didn’t want to lead the pack too much, didn’t want to push it too much, but really save it towards the end of the race. And of course, Mons really came through and took the win, which is huge,” Landstedt said.

“And Zach was a little bit back from what he wanted to be, but still being top 10 is great. And our third skier, Max, I mean, he really had an incredible race for him. This was one of his best stage races ever. So it really came through well.”

The Ute women started the day strong, helping put Utah in a position to win the national championship.

Erica Lavén placed third with a time of 52:22.7, with teammate Witta Walcher just a couple seconds behind her for a fifth-place finish in the women’s 20K freestyle.

“That was so amazing to ski together in that group. I feel like we gave each other the energy we needed to keep on pushing all the way to the finish line,” Lavén said.

Utah’s strategy in the race was to hang back a little bit so the skiers would have more energy near the end, and it worked.

“We had a pretty good plan set up for the women first, they knew that this girl who won, she’s very strong. So if she went too hard, they will sit back a little bit. So Erica and Witta did not go with the leader and risk just doing too much and getting too tired and falling back later in the race,” Landstedt said.

“And of course, one of the Colorado girls went with her and kind of died later on. So they stayed back a little bit and then they really came through in the end, and that’s where the points are. To finish in the top eight is huge.”

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Members of the University of Utah Ski team celebrate their NCAA skiing National Championship at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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University of Utah’s Mons Melbye, celebrates as he crosses the finish line, winning the men’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA Championships at Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Utah’s Erica Laven, and other racers compete in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. Laven placed 3rd. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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University of Utah’s Erica Laven, and other racers compete in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Rosie Fordham, from Alaska Fairbanks celebrates as she wins the women’s 20k Freestyle at the NCAA skiing championships at Solier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Rosie Fordham, 20k freestyle Mass Start winner from the University of Alaska Fairbanks greets 3rd place finisher University of Utah’s Erica Laven, after the NCAA skiing championships at the Solier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Rosie Fordham, from Alaska Fairbanks, and others compete in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race at the NCAA skiing championships at Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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University of Denver cheer as they placed in third place at the NCAA skiing championships at the Solier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Montana State cheers as they placed in fourth place at the NCAA skiing championships at the Solier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Women’s top eight finishers pose for photos after the 20KM Freestyle Mass Start at the NCAA skiing championships at the Solier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Men’s top eight finishers pose for photos after the 20KM Freestyle Mass Start at the NCAA skiing championships at the Solier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Rosie Fordham, from Alaska Fairbanks celebrates as she wins the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race at the NCAA skiing championships at Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Rosie Fordham, from Alaska Fairbanks celebrates as she wins the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race at the NCAA skiing championships at Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Rosie Fordham, from Alaska Fairbanks competes in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race at the NCAA skiing championships at Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. She went on to win the event. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Rosie Fordham, from Alaska Fairbanks celebrates as she wins the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race at the NCAA skiing championships at Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Rosie Fordham, from Alaska Fairbanks competes in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race at the NCAA skiing championships at Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. She went on to win the event. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Rosie Fordham, from Alaska Fairbanks competes in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race at the NCAA skiing championships at Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. She went on to win the event. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Rosie Fordham, from Alaska Fairbanks competes in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race at the NCAA skiing championships at Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. She went on to win the event. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Rosie Fordham, from Alaska Fairbanks competes in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race at the NCAA skiing championships at Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. She went on to win the event. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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University of Utah’s Mons Melbye, celebrates at the NCAA Championships at Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Rosie Fordham, from Alaska Fairbanks competes in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race at the NCAA skiing championships at Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. She went on to win the event. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Utah’s Witta Walcher, begins the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Vermont’s Kristin Helland, and other skiers work thier way up a rise as they compete in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Utah’s Erica Laven, and Witta Walcher, hug after the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. Lavan placed 3rd and Walcher placed 5th. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Utah’s Erica Laven, and Vermont’s Haley Brewster, crash to the snow after battling to the finish in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. Laven placed 3rd and L | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Utah’s Erica Laven, and Vermont’s Haley Brewster, compete in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. Laven placed 3rd and Brewster placed 2nd. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Utah’s Erica Laven, and Vermont’s Haley Brewster, crash to the snow after battling to the finish in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. Laven placed 3rd and L | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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University of Utah’s Mons Melbye, battles to the finish for the win in the men’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Utah’s Erica Laven, grabs a drink during the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race at the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Utah’s Erica Laven, and Vermont’s Haley Brewster, battle toward the finish in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. Laven placed 3rd and Brewster placed 2nd. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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John Hagenbuch, of Dartmouth and University of Utah’s Mons Melbye, battle to the finish in the men’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. Melbye edged Hagenbuch for the win. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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John Hagenbuch, of Dartmouth and University of Utah’s Mons Melbye, battle to the finish in the men’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. Melbye edged Hagenbuch for the win. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Utah’s Erica Laven, and Vermont’s Haley Brewster, crash to the snow after battling to the finish in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. Laven placed 3rd and L | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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University of Utah’s Mons Melbye, and John Hagenbuch, of Dartmouth battle to the finish in the men’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. Melbye edged Hagenbuch for the win. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Vermont’s Tabor Greenberg, crosses the finish line in third place in the men’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race at the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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University of Utah’s Zachary Jayne and other racers compete in the men’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Denver’s Maja Moland, tries to recover after competing in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. Moland placed 26th overall. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Racers compete in the men’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Racers compete in the men’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Racers compete in the men’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Racers compete in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Racers compete in the men’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Racers compete in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Spectators cheer and yell during as racers compete in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race at the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Racers compete in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Utah’s Max Kluck competes in the men’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Racers compete in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Racers compete in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Gillian Fairfax, of Bowdoin College and other racers compete in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Utah’s Mons Melbye, and Colorado’s Jakob Moch, ski near each other during the men’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Luke Fricker of Northern Michigan, and other racers compete in the men’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Montana State’s Simon Chappaz, Colorado’s Jakob Moch, and Sam Friday, of Saint Michael’s College compete in the men’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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University of Utah’s Mons Melbye, battles up a hill as he and other racers compete in the men’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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University of Utah’s Mons Melbye, makes a turn and heads down hill as he and other racers compete in the men’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Hattie Barker, University of New Hampshire and other racers compete in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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University of Utah’s Mons Melbye, and the other racers in the men’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race begin thier race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Members of the University of Utah Ski team celebrate thier NCAA skiing National Championship at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Utah’s Erica Laven, and other racers compete in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. Laven placed 3rd. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Vermont’s Haley Brewster, and Utah’s Erica Laven, cruise down a hill as they compete in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA skiing championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. Brewster placed 2nd and Laven placed 3rd. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Colorado teammembers cheer as they placed in second place at the NCAA skiing championships at the Solier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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University of Utah’s Mons Melbye, celebrates as he crosses the finish line, winning the men’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race during the NCAA Championships at Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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Rosie Fordham, from Alaska Fairbanks, (right) and others compete in the women’s 20KM Freestyle Mass Start race at the NCAA skiing championships at Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, on Saturday, March 14, 2026. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

Sofia Pedersen rounded out the results for the Utes with a 24th-place finish, which gave Utah’s team a second-place finish in the women’s 20K freestyle.

The results of the women’s race were the difference in a back-and-forth four-day event between Utah and Colorado. The Utes’ second-place finish in the women’s 20K freestyle earned them 70 points, while Colorado earned 56 with a fourth-place finish.

Overall, Utah scored 549.5 points to win the NCAA championship, with Colorado taking second with 539 points and Denver earning bronze with 386.5 points.

The snow on the course was surrounded by dryness elsewhere at Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, Utah, and Melbye and other skiers were wearing shorts, but the conditions held up for the race. The championships were originally scheduled to be held in Montana before lack of snowfall there caused the NCAAs to be moved to Utah.

“It was actually way better than we expected. It was super solid. They have worked really good with the course and couldn’t have been better with the conditions we had,” Lavén said.

Utah extended its skiing dynasty, winning its 18th team title to continue the program’s recent run of dominance. It was Landstedt’s sixth championship since arriving in Salt Lake City.

“I said when I was interviewing for the position in Utah that Utah should have the best team. On the Nordic side, there’s no better skiing anywhere in the country than here, and then on the Alpine side with the new hill at (Utah Olympic Park), I mean, that’s unbelievable training as well,” Landstedt said.

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Utah reaffirmed its status as one of the premier ski programs in the country on Saturday.

“I think that it’s getting to a point where really the top young skiers, they want to come to Utah and ski, and I can understand that. I mean, it’s a great place to be, great place to live, and really good support from the university and athletics,” Landstedt said.

With no seniors among the NCAA participants, Landstedt and the Utes already have their eye on next year’s title.

“We’re going to try to keep it up and get more good recruits in and hopefully do really well next year as well. We have actually no seniors on the team that skied NCAA this year, so everyone is coming back next year,” Landstedt said.

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