2018 UTAH SKIING MEDIA GUIDE Spence Eccles Ski Team Building The University of Utah ski team opened Spence Eccles Ski Team Build- ing in April, 2017, a state-of-the-art facility that is the first of its kind in NCAA skiing. Construction began on the two-story, 5,931 square-foot building in June, 2016. The ground floor enters into a lobby holding the Alf Engen Sports- manship Award bowl, a ski-themed chandelier and a commemorative donor plaque. A film study room and lounge for the student-athletes also holds a small office for private study and meetings, as well as plaques commemorating Olympians and All-Americans. Men’s and women’s custom locker rooms for dry gear storage open into Nordic and alpine team rooms with tuning tables and ski and boot storage for each team. On the second level, a large board room is available for team meet- ings and also serves as a trophy room, holding Utah's NCAA trophies along with a plaque commemorating Utah's individual national cham- pions. The table features a three-dimensional map identifying the ski areas of the Wasatch mountains. A balcony with views of the mountains and the city is also available for gatherings. The exterior of the building has parking areas for the ski team vehicles, as well as a canopy to keep the vehicles covered. Additional storage is available in the building’s basement. The building is located north of the McCarthey Family Track and Field, between the track and Dumke Family Softball Stadium. 2018 Utah Skiing Quick Facts Staff/Team Information Media Information University of Utah Information Coaching Staff Sr. Associate AD/Sports Information ... Liz Abel Location .............................Salt Lake City, Utah Director of Skiing .... Kevin Sweeney (14th Year) Associate SID/Skiing Contact ........................... Elevation ................................................. 4,500 Head Alpine Coach ...Jaka Korencan (13th Year) .....................................Brooke Frederickson Founded .................................................. 1850 Head Nordic Coach ..............Abi Holt (9th Year) Email ....... [email protected] Enrollment ............................................ 32,760 Assistant Alpine Coach Jeremy Elliot (3rd Year) Phone ......................................(801) 581-8302 Nickname ................................................. Utes Cell ...........................................(801) 493-9254 Colors ......................Red and White (pms 187) Team Information: Mailing Address ...... 1825 E. South Campus Dr. Mascot .....................Swoop (Red-Tailed Hawk) 2017 NCAA Championships .........................1st Salt Lake City, UT 84112 Facility ..............Snowbasin Ski Resort (Alpine) 2017 RMISA Championship/ .........................Soldier Hollow Resort (Nordic) NCAA West Regional................................... 3rd Brooke Frederickson Web Site .......................... www.UtahUtes.com Associate Director of Conference ............................................Pac-12 Social Media Communications President .............................David W. Pershing Facebook .... www.facebook.com/utahskiteam Athletics Director ......................Chris Hill, Ph.D Twitter ...................................... @utahskiteam Instagram .................................. @utahskiteam Men’s Alpine Men’s Nordic Name Yr. Hometown Name Yr. Hometown Sam Dupratt Sr. Park City, Utah Martin Bergström Sr. Piteå, Sweden Martin Grasic Jr. Invermere, B.C., Canada Logan Diekmann So. Bozeman, Mont. Fredrik Maurstad Fr. Oslo, Norway Jacob Engström Jr. Sweden Huston Philp Fr. Calgary, Alberta, Canada Håkon Hjelstuen Sr. Trondheim, Norway Ty Sprock Jr. Stateline, Nev. Bjørn Georg Riksaasen Fr. Vågå, Norway Linus Walch Fr. Lech, Vorarlberg, Austria Women’s Alpine Women’s Nordic Name Yr. Hometown Name Yr. Hometown Mariah Bredal Fr. Victor, Idaho Ann-Kathrin Breuning Sr. Nesselwang, Germany Guro Jordheim So. Hemsedal, Buskerud, Norway Sabine Krautgasser So. San Candido, Italy Leah Lange So. Park City, Utah Julie Mohagen Jr. Oslo, Norway Karianne Moe Fr. Oslo, Norway Director of Skiing Kevin Sweeney (14th Year) Head Alpine Coach Jaka Korencan Head Nordic Coach Abi Holt Assistant Alpine Coach Jeremy Elliot 2018 Utah Skiing The goal of any NCAA champion team is to repeat, and the goal is no Nordic different for the 2018 Utah ski team. The Utes return several of their top skiers from the team that won the NCAA Championship, but the squad “Everyone has high hopes and expectations and sure would like to will also look for returning and new skiers to step into key roles. defend that national championship title,” Utah head Nordic coach Abi “I am very optimistic about this season’s team,” Utah director of ski- Holt said. “We did graduate over half of that team, but I’m not sure any ing Kevin Sweeney said. “There is no doubt we lost a lot of talent, but at of the new incoming athletes see it as a rebuilding year. They want to the same time, those that are returning are great skiers and they under- keep building on past successes. Everyone has high hopes. We’ve had stand collegiate skiing and understand what the championship is about, a great fall of training, maybe our best ever since I’ve been here. This that we have to score well as a team. At the same time, we’ve got to fill group has really managed the training load well and as a team this is the in some big holes and I feel good about the talent we’ve brought in. I’m healthiest we have ever been through this fall segment. I think we’re looking at the returning athletes to really be leaders and help this new ready for what’s coming.” group adjust to college skiing. I think we have some great talent.” In his first season at Utah last year, Bergström swept both the men’s Utah returns four All-Americans from the 2017 team. Martin 10-km classic and 20-km freestyle races at the 2017 NCAA Champion- Bergström is a two-time NCAA Champion after winning both the men’s ships. He was the USCSCA National Skier of the Year for men’s Nordic classic and freestyle races at last year’s championships. Guro Jordheim and the RMISA Men’s Nordic Athlete of the Year. Bergström had six finished in the top six in the women’s classic and freestyle races last podium finishes last year. season. Julie Mohagen is the women’s 2016 NCAA slalom champion and “Martin is definitely a strong leader for the team and it’s nice for the a two-time All-American while Sam Dupratt finished second in the men’s incoming athletes to have the bar to train with every single day,” Holt giant slalom at NCAA’s last year. said. “They know what the level is and they get to work with him con- “I think our strength this year is that we should be able to score well stantly, so I think that has already helped us. His goal is to defend both in each discipline,” Sweeney said. “We’ve got good experience in each titles, and if he can do it he will truly be in the record books.” discipline and I feel we’re quite balanced in that regard. We understand A pair of second year skiers will be looking to make it to the NCAA what our team and individual goals are. I feel like we’ve had one of the Championships this season after serving as alternates last year. Logan best periods of fall training that I’ve ever experienced. I feel like we’ve Diekmann had a season-best fourth-place finish last year in the sprint got a group that’s got good heads on their shoulders. It feels good that freestyle at the Seawolf Invite. He had two top-15 finishes in his first we’re all in and it’s going in the right direction. We’ve done some things season. Jacob Engström’s best finish last year was seventh in the sprint differently to foster team cohesiveness and unity, and having this new freestyle at the Seawolf Invite, and he had six top-15 finishes during the building has also made it easier for us to connect.” year. Newcomer Håkon Hjelstuen of Trondheim, Norway, skied at Michi- gan Tech in 2015 as part of an exchange program. He competed at the 2015 NCAA Championships, finishing 34th in the 20-km classic and 40th in the 10-km freestyle. More recently, Hjelstuen won the 2017 Tour de Ski China, winning two of the six stages with four total podium finishes. Bjørn Riksaasen also joins the Utes from Vågå, Norway. He finished 19th in the 10-km classic and 48th in the 20-km freestyle at the 2017 Norwe- gian National Junior Championships. He skis for club Vaagaa II. “Håkon competed at the NCAA Championships while sick, so I know he has a score to settle,” Holt said. On the women’s side, Jordheim was a two-time All-American in her first season last year, finishing fifth in the 5-km classic and sixth in the 15-km freestyle at the NCAA Championships. The first-team All-RMISA selection had four podium finishes last year. “Guro has definitely been a leader for the women’s team,” Holt said. “She landed second on the women’s MVP list last year and I know she would like to move up a spot and grab her first NCAA championship as well.” Local product Leah Lange is also in her second season with the Utes. She had four top-15 finishes last year with a season-best 11th-place finish in the sprint freestyle at the Seawolf Invite and was an NCAA alternate. Utah adds two skiers in women’s Nordic, Karianne Moe and Mariah Bredal. Moe was a member of the Junior National Norwegian Team in 2016-17 and finished 11th in the sprint and 16th in the 15-km freestyle at the 2017 Norwegian National Junior Championships. Bredal, who has dual Norwegian and American citizenship, attended Jackson Hole Com- munity School (Wyoming) before moving to Norway to train beginning with the 2014-15 season. She finished 35th in U20 in the 5-km classic ta the 2017 Norwegian National Junior Championship.