DONNER SUMMIT, Calif. (Mar. 13) - A strong finish by UAA's nordic squad propelled the Seawolves from eighth to sixth on the final day of the 2004 NCAA Skiing Championships at the Auburn Ski Club here today. Four Seawolf skiers earned All-America honors after placing in the top-10 in today's classical events, led by sophomore Mandy Kaempf's second runner-up finish of the championships.

New Mexico won its first NCAA championship in any sport by capturing the 2004 team title with a comfortable 623 points. Utah edged out Denver for third, followed by Colorado in fourth and Vermont in fifth. UAA's sixth-place finish (504 points) was its highest since placing fifth in 1998. The Seawolves have now placed in the top 10 at Nationals for 20 consecutive seasons.

Kaempf (Steinbach-Hallenberg, Germany) claimed her second All-America accolade of the meet by taking second in the women's 15K classic with a time of 53:12.8. UAF's Sigrid Aas (53:04.7) edged out Kaempf to complete a sweep of the women's nordic events.

Junior Sarah Hansen (Wasilla) earned the first All-America honor of her career after placing eighth in 53:46.3. Hansen gained the distinction of being the first American woman to cross the finish line in the 15K. Sophomore Nicole DeYong (Anchorage) finished 16th (54:46.9) for UAA's women, which placed second overall in the event behind Colorado.

The Seawolf men also garnered two top-10 performances in the 20K classical by junior Zach Violett (Brownsville, Calif.) and senior Eric Strabel (Palmer).

Violett, the first American to finish, picked up his third career All-America honor after placing fourth with a time of 53:22.7. Violett, who also took seventh in the freestyle earlier in the week, was one second shy of placing on the podium in third.

Strabel raced to a ninth-place finish (53:47.0) gaining his second career All-America award. Sophomore Brent Knight (Soldotna) was a solid 16th (54:44.8) for the Seawolf men who like the women finished second as a team in the event.

Utah's Henning Dybendal won the men's individual title with a time of 53:11.9.

UAA's nordic team finished second in the overall points race, trailing only Colorado (354-375). The Seawolves' men's nordic and alpine squads combined to finish fourth overall, while the women placed seventh.

The Seawolves return nine of their 10 NCAA qualifiers next season, losing only senior Eric Strabel to graduation.

Final Team Standings

1. New Mexico 623
2. Utah 581
3. Denver 568
4. Colorado 564
5. Vermont 533.5
6. Alaska Anchorage 504
7. Middlebury 495.5
8. Dartmouth 391
9. Nevada 383
10. Alaska Fairbanks 219
11. Colby 210.5
12. Northern Michigan 198.5
13. Williams 178
14. New Hampshire 149
15. Montana State 127
16. Western State 110
17. Boise State 67
18. Whitman 62
19. Harvard 40
20. Bates 27
21. Michigan Tech 11
22. UW-Green Bay 1

Women's 15K Classic Results:
1) Sigrid Aas UAF 53:04.7
2) Mandy Kaempf UAA 53:12.8
3) Trine Lundamo New Mexico 53:21.6
4) Jana Rehemaa Colorado 53:28.4
5) Muriele Huberli Colorado 53:30.0
6) Lindsey Weier Northern Michigan 53:31.0
6) Claire Critchley Colorado 53:31.0
8) Sarah Hansen UAA 53:46.3
9) Sari Tuovinen Nevada 53:53.0
Other UAA Results:
16) Nicole DeYong 54:46.9

Men's 20K Classic Results:
1) Henning Dybendal Utah 53:11.9
2) Erik Tok Schjellerud Colorado 53:16.7
3) Geir-endre Rogn New Mexico 53:21.7
4) Zach Violett UAA 53:22.7
5) Erling Christiansen Colorado 53:23.6
6) Ethan Foster Vermont 53:28.3
7) Dirk Grimm New Mexico 53:28.4
8) Jesse Carlstrom Nevada 53:40.5
9) Eric Strabel UAA 53:47.0
10) Lowell Bailey Vermont 53:50.4
Other UAA Results:
16) Brent Knight 54:44.8