Kaleta, Boee Hit Podium In RMISA Qualifiers

Sunday, January 7

Midway, Utah

Qualifiers M-9 AM/W 9:45 AM / Heats 11:20 AM

Colorado

Classic Sprints

January 07, 2024 | Skiing

Results

By: Curtis Snyder, Associate AD/Athletic Communications

MIDWAY, Utah – Weronika Kaleta took second and Magnus Boee third as the Colorado Buffaloes took part in classic sprint RMISA Qualifiers races that doubled as a US Super Tour race held here at Solder Hollow after the conclusion of the 2024 U.S. Cross Country Ski National Championships.

The races to not count toward team scoring but do count toward NCAA Qualification.

Kaleta's second place finish is the best of her career and her fourth career podium appearance, three of which have come in sprint races. She had the 10th fastest qualifying time in the field, fourth fastest among RMISA skiers, and she then took second in her quarterfinal heat. She was third in her semifinal heat but advanced to the finals as a lucky loser, where she was one of three RMISA skiers in the six-skier final. The took fourth overall in the final heat and behind just Utah's Karianne Dengerud in the RMISA standings.

Kaleta was the only women's skier to advance to the heats after the qualifier. Hanna Abrahamsson finished 43rd in the qualifier race, not advancing to the heats, and took 20th for her NCAA Qualification placement, and Sophie Spalding was 43rd overall, 23rd for RMISA Skiers. Elena Grissom (60th/28th) and Kili Lehmkuhl (69th/30th) rounded out the CU contingent.

The men advanced four skiers to the heats, as Boee was joined by Hugo Hinckfuss, Trey Jones and Will Koch. Boee led the way for the Buffs with the 13th fastest qualifying time (seventh for RMISA) while Hinckfuss (15th overall, eighth RMISA) and Koch (17th overall, ninth RMISA) were right behind him. Jones was the final qualifier in at 30th place, and was 14th among RMISA skeirs.

In the heats, Boee won his quarterfinal heat and took second in his semifinal heat before taking fifth in the final heat. There were four RMISA skiers in the final heat, and Utah's Tom Mancini and Denver's Florian Knopf finished ahead of Boee in the final. Hinckfuss took second in his quarterfinal heat and was then fourth in his semifinal heat, not advancing to the final, and Koch was third in his semifinal heat and the final lucky loser into the semifinals where he was sixth in his heat. Jones was fourth in his quarterfinal heat.

The Buffs did place two more in the top 20 of the RMISA standings and NCAA qualification with Johannes Flaaten finishing 34th in the qualifier, picking up a 15th place RMISA finish, and Alexander Maurer was 40th overall, 18th in the RMISA. Luka Riley did not start the race.

UP NEXT: The Buffs remain in Utah for another week and will have some time off to rest and train before the start of the Utah Invitational Friday and Saturday. Teams will take part in a 7.5K freestyle races Friday and 10K classic races Saturday. Alpine teams will then take center stage and finish both the Westminster and Utah Invitationals over four days from January 17-20.

WHAT IT MEANS: The Buffs successfully got the 2024 season underway with three Nordic races counting toward NCAA Qualification out of the four races at the U.S. National Championships. On the men's side, the team looks deep with 17 top 20 performances in the three races including 11 top 11 finishes from five different skiers. On the women's side, Kaleta is looking solid early in the season and the addition of her sister Karolina and Anna-Maria Dietze will benefit the Buffs next week for the Utah Invitational. Should Abrahamsson continue to get healthy and move up the standings, the future is bright for both Nordic teams.

FREESTYLE MASS START RESULTS: Also taking place Friday were the 20K senior and 10K junior freestyle mass start races at the US Championships. The race counted as neither an RMISA Qualifier or meet race. In the women's 20K freestyle race, Weronika Kaleta led the way in 21st place, which was seventh best among RMISA skiers. Kili Lehmkuhl placed 37th, and Hanna Abrahamsson 44th. In the junior race, Elena Grissom paced the Buffs with a 20th place finish while Sophie Spalding did not start the race. In the men's 20K race, Will Koch picked up a top 10 on the heels of his national championship on Thursday, which was fifth among RMISA skiers, and Magnus Boee picked up another top 20 in 18th, ninth best in the RMISA. Johannes Flaaten was 22nd, Hugo Hinckfuss 24th, and Alexander Maurer 45th while Luka Riley did not start the race.

INDIVIDUAL NOTES:

Kaleta opened her season with two top 10 performances after sitting out the first race here last Tuesday. Her second place finish was a career best, better three third place finishes as she now has four podium appearances in her career. She has been dominant in sprint races, as three of her four podiums have come in sprint races out of just six sprint starts in her career. Overall, she now has 25 race finishes with 19 top 10 and seven top five finishes with her four podiums. Three of her four podiums have also come in classic races, as she has nine career top 10 finishes in classic races with four top fives and those three podiums.
Abrahamsson has now finished all 25 of her career races in the top 20. Spalding had the best finish of her young career in 23rd place, and she now has finished 27th twice and 23rd. Grissom finished 28th and Lehmkuhl 30th for the Buffaloes.
Boee raced in his 50th career race Sunday and his third-place finish was the 27th podium, 35th top 5, 44th top 10 and 49th top 20 finish in those 50 races. He also has 15 career wins. He ranks seventh in CU history for most podium appearances, fourth among men's skiers and third for men's Nordic skiers. It's his 15th podium in classic races, third most in CU history.
Hinckfuss' sixth place finish is the third best of his career behind a pair of fifth place finishes. In four career sprint races, he has finished in the top four all 10 times with two top five finishes. It's also his sixth career top 10 finish and fourth in six classic races early in his sophomore season.
Koch's ninth place finish gives him three top 10 finishes to start the season, the 23rd of his career in 31 career starts. He has eight straight top 10 finishes dating back to last season.
Jones continued the solid start to his collegiate career in 13th place after taking third in the freestyle sprints Thursday. He has three top 20 finishes to start his career. As does Flaaten, who has finished in the top 15 in his first three collegiate races. Maurer's 18th place finish gives him two straight top 20s to open 2024 and three straight dating back to last season. He now has 14 top 20s in 19 career starts.

MEN'S CLASSIC SPRINT RESULTS (34 Collegiate Finishers): 1. Tom Mancini, UU, Finals 2nd Place; 2. Florian Knopf, DU, Finals 4th Place; 3. Magnus Boee, CU, Finals 5th Place; 4. Peter Hinds, UAA, Finals 6th Place; 5. Walker Hall, UU, Semifinals 3rd Place. Other CU Finishers: 6. Hugo Hinckfuss, Semifinals 4th Place; 9. Will Koch, Semifinals 6th Place; 13. Trey Jones, Quarterfinals 4th Place; 15. Joohan Flaaten, Qualifier 15th Place; 18. Alexander Maurer, Qualifier 18th Place. Did Not Start: Luka Riley.

WOMEN'S CLASSIC SPRINT RESULTS (38 Collegiate Finishers): 1. Karianne Dengerud, UU, Finals 1st Place; 2. Weronika Kaleta, CU, Finals 4th Place; 3. Sydney Palmer-Leger, UU, Finals 5th Place; 4. Mariel Pulles, Semifinals 3rd Place; 5. Celine Mayer, UU, Semifinals 6th Place. Other CU Finishers: 20. Hanna Abrahamsson, Qualifier 20th Place; 23. Sophie Spalding, Qualifier 23rd Place; 28. Elena Grissom, Qualifier 28th Place; 30. Kili Lehmkuhl, Qualifier 30th Place.