Colorado wins NCAA Skiing Championships, Arkansas and Texas Tech take indoor track & field titles
The GIST: Another sign of spring, besides Daylight Savings Time? Winter sports’ first national champs were crowned this weekend, with more coming down the pipe at breakneck speed.
⛷️ Skiing: The Colorado Buffaloes erased a 51-point deficit to usurp defending champ Utah, securing their first national title since 2015 on their home course on Saturday. It all came down to the 20km men’s Nordic Classical event, where Colorado’s Magnus Boee’s first-place finish helped the Buffs nab the narrowest win of the coed championship era. Ice under their skis and in their veins.
👟 Indoor track & field: No. 1 Arkansas’ women, ahem, ran it back with their second straight national championship on Saturday, edging No. 2 Florida for the tight dub. But Arkansas’ No. 1 men’s team failed to defend their title and secure a sweep, allowing No. 2 Texas Tech to race away with their first-ever indoor natty.
- Thirty-four athletes and relay teams snagged individual national titles, but Florida distance queen Parker Valby took things a (speedy) step further — the reigning women’s cross country champ added two titles and an NCAA record to her trophy case.
▶️ Up next: The women’s ice hockey national championship bracket dropped yesterday, with seven of last year’s 11 title contenders returning for another crack at the Frozen Four. Fierce rivals Ohio State and Wisconsin snagged the top two seeds, respectively, potentially setting up a rematch of last year’s title game. Start the countdown — puck drops for the Regional round on Thursday.
