Since its inception in 1974, the United States Collegiate Skiing Association (USCSA) has provided a competition venue to student-athletes who choose to attend institutions that do not support an NCAA Alpine or Nordic program. Today, roughly 5,000 athletes across 140 schools compete in snowsports through the USCSA.

The 32 Nordic programs are divided across three regions — East, Midwest and West.

Stay tuned as we deep dive some of the individual squads in upcoming articles.

2024 Nationals Results

March 5-9 – Mount Van Hoevenberg

Women

7.5K FS

1. Lily Hubanks, St. Olaf – 23:58.8
2. Dolcie Tanguay, Paul Smith’s College – 24:07.4
3. Amaeli Kam-Magruder, St. Olaf – 24:31.6

Classic sprint

1. Dolcie Tanguay, Paul Smith’s College
2. Anne Miller, University of Wyoming
3. Katie Milligan Susong, University of Wisconsin

15K CL mass start

1. Amaeli Kam-Magruder, St. Olaf – 52:04.7
2. Lily Hubanks, St. Olaf – 53:53.6
3. Katie Milligan Suson, University of Wisconsin – 54:17.1

Team sprint

1. Paul Smith’s College – 10:40
2. St. Olaf – 10:42
3. University of Wisconsin – 11:02

Team overall (7.5K FS | Sprint | 15K CL | Team sprint | TOTAL)

1	St. Olaf College	15	22	11	10	58
2	University of Wisconsin Madison	42	24	23	15	104
3	Paul Smith’s College	30	37	45	5	117
4	University of Wyoming	25	42	30	25	122
5	University of Minnesota – Twin Cities	43	56	55	30	184
6	Cornell University	66	66	50	20	202
7	Western Colorado University	72	54	96	35	257
8	University of Maine at Farmington	92	89	98	60	339
9	Clarkson University	106	106	106	40	358
10	Colorado Mesa University	100	117	90	60	367
11	Colorado State University	116	117	104	45	382
12	United States Military Academy	120	117	115	60	412
13	University of Minnesota Duluth	133	114	120	60	427
14	United States Air Force Academy	122	138	123	50	433

Men

7.5K FS

1. Aidan Ripp, Paul Smith’s College – 20:29.1
2. Iver Skaarseth, Colorado Mesa – 21:13.7
3. Conner Roberts, Clarkson University – 21:54.0

Classic sprint

1. Aidan Ripp, Paul Smith’s College
2. Iver Skaarseth, Colorado Mesa
3. Connor Roberts, Clarkson University

15K CL mass start

1. Aidan Ripp, Paul Smith’s College – 39:21.8
2. Kaj Taylor, University of Wyoming – 40:58.1
3. Conner Roberts, Clarkson University – 41:28.7

Team overall (7.5K FS | Sprint | 15K CL | Team sprint | TOTAL)

1. Clarkson University 16 21 16 15 68
2. Paul Smith’s College 28 16 21 5 70
3. Western Colorado University 33 38 32 10 113
4. University of Wyoming 61 50 60 20 191
5. St. Olaf College 42 78 53 30 203
6. Cornell University 78 50 51 25 204
7. Colorado Mesa University 74 75 81 50 280
8. University of Wisconsin Madison 85 78 79 40 282
9. University of Minnesota Duluth 83 102 66 55 306
10. University of Minnesota – Twin Cities 90 122 115 35 362
11. Colorado State University 108 135 117 55 415
12. United States Air Force Academy 113 133 121 50 417
13. Vermont State University – Castleton 120 135 109 55 419

East (12 teams)

The Eastern Collegiate Ski Conference includes 12 teams and more than 200 athletes across the six New England states and Quebec.

The regular season includes three or four weekends in January and February with a Divisional and Regional Championship to follow. Unlike some of the other regions, where USCSA schools compete against one another within outside events, ESCS member schools host standalone races.

“Thanks to running our own series, we can be quite creative in what races we host every weekend,” Torin LaLiberte and John Thompson, Nordic co-coordinators stated in a USCSA team guide released to coaches and members of the press.

That means there are skiathlons, criteriums and cross-country cross events sprinkled in with the usual championship formats (sprints, 7.5K, 15K and sprint relays).

The top five men’s and women’s teams at the regional competition advanced to the national championships, as well as up to six individuals (who place in the top-20) from each field.

Teams/notes (team data comes courtesy of a USCSA team guide provided to coaches and members of the press):

• Clarkson University — Potsdam, NY
  • Notable performances: 39 podiums and 9 overall victories at USCSA nationals.
  • Team size: 15-25
  • Founded in 1964; member of USCSA since 1985.
  • Won the men’s team national title last year
  • Head coach: Torin La Liberte
• Cornell University – Ithaca, NY
  • Founded in 1934; added a women’s team in 1975 and joined USCSA in 1994.
  • Women won the regionals and men were third last year. Both finished sixth at nationals
  • student run team
  • Team size: 20-35
  • Previously one-half of the 1995 NCAA-licensed Cornell Ski Team
• Dartmouth College – Hanover, NH
  • “Dartmouth Club Nordic”
  • Student led
  • “Refounded out of the ashes in 2015”
• McGill University – Montreal, Quebec
  • 15 USCSA racers, and about 40 skiers
  • also competes at Canadian Ski Marathon and Gatineau Worldloppet
• Middlebury College – Middlebury, Vermont
  • 25-45 skiers
  • Est. 2019
  • Notable performances: one All-American, regional champions, one World University Games qualifier.
• Northeastern University – Boston, MA
  • roughly 25 skiers
  • created in 2023
• Paul Smith’s College – Paul Smith’s New York
  • official training center for sport and education for both USA Nordic and USA Biathlon
  • founded in 1950; joined USCSA in 2008
  • 2022 national champions
• Smith College – Northampton, MA
  • 30 skiers, 9 USCSA racers
  • Est. 2022, joined USCSA in 2023
  • 3 athletes competed at 2024 nationals, earning academic All-American status
• United States Military Academy at West Point – West Point, NY
  • about 15 skiers
  • qualified two skiers for nationals
• University of Maine Farmington – Farmington, ME
  • about 3 athletes
  • Est. 2008
  • qualified a an athlete to 2025 World University Games
  • 8th last year at USCSA nationals
• University of Vermont – Burlington, VT
  • More than 50 skiers
• Wellesley College – Wellesley, MA
  • 20-35 skiers

Midwest (11 teams)

The Midwest Region’s 11 teams take a slightly different approach to the race calendar compared to the East. Most of the calendar consists of citizen marathon events. The Midwest Collegiate Cup includes four weekends of races — all longer than 20K — finishing with the American Birkebeiner.

“This unique format allows teams to represent their universities on an international stage, while building lifelong connections with race hosts, volunteers and their fellow competitors,” stated Luke Dykowski, the region’s Nordic coordinator.

The only college-only event on the schedule is the two-day Midwest Regionals in Rhinelander, Wisconsin. Up to five men’s and women’s teams will qualify for the USCSA National Championships.

Teams/notes:

• Carleton College – Northfield, MN
  • roughly 20 skiers
  • varsity team from 1939-2002; club teamed formed in 2002.
  • Joined USCSA in 2021.
• CSB/SJU – Collegeville, MN
  • roughly 15 skiers
  • New to the USCSA in 2024
• St. Olaf College – Northfield, MN
  • 20-22 skiers
  • Women’s national champions 2022, 2023, 2024
  • Men’s national results: 2nd (2020), 6th (2023), 5th (2024)
• Michigan Tech University – Houghton, MI
  • 40-50 members, 10-15 racers
  • Joined USCSA in 2019
• Northern Michigan University – Marquette, MI
  • 14 members, 7 racers
  • joined USCSA in 2022
• University of Michigan – Ann Arbor, MI
  • roughly 20 skiers
• University of Minnesota-Duluth – Duluth, MN
  • 30 members; 15-25 racers
  • Started in the mid-90s after NCAA program was cut.
• University of Minnesota – Minneapolis, MN
  • 100 members; roughly 50 racers
  • existed as a club since the 70s; joined USCSA in 2019
  • Women have won Midwest Collegiate Cup three of the last five seasons.
• University of Notre Dame – South Bend, Indiana
  • roughly 20 skiers
• University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire – Eau Claire, WI
  • Joined USCSA in 2022
  • Women have placed in the top-5 in the region the last two years
• University of Wisconsin – Madison, WI
  • 70 members
  • Est. in 2006; founding member of the Midwest Region in 2019
  • 2024 – women finished runner-up at nationals

West (9 teams)

The nine teams — spread across three states — in the Rocky Mountain Conference enjoy four race weekends, each hosted by a different member school.

The schedule also includes the Alley Loop Marathon in Crested Butte, Colorado.

Instead of designated a weekend as the regional championships, the RMC takes all conference races into account when qualifying athletes to nationals. Each team automatically qualifies its top-3 men and women as long as they’ve competed in two races of each discipline. Teams can qualify additional athletes via a “modified USSA points system.”

Teams/notes:

• Colorado College – Colorado Springs, CO
  • 10-25 skiers
  • team doubled in size last year
  • women were second in conference in 2023
• Colorado Mesa University – Grand Junction, CO
  • 8 skiers
  • Est. 2007
  • 2018 national champions
  • 2024 – six All-Americans
• Colorado State University – Fort Collins, CO
  • 15-30 athletes
  • Est. 1981; refounded in 2020
  • Claudia Burgess finished second at nationals individually last year
• Montana State University – Bozeman, MT
  • 20-25 skiers
  • founded “a few years before the pandemic”
• United States Air Force Academy – Colorado Springs, CO
  • 10-15 skiers
  • Est. 1980s
• University of Colorado-Boulder – Boulder, CO
  • 15-50 skiers
• University of Wyoming – Laramie, WY
  • roughly 30 skiers
  • Joined USCSA in 1998
  • 13 overall team national titles
• Western Colorado University – Gunnison, CO
  • 12-18 skiers
  • founded in 1946; NCAA program prior to 2008
  • National champions (men): 2011, 2018, 2023