Nick Cohee earns top seed at NCAA ski nationals

Carson Valley resident and Douglas High graduate Nick Cohee, former junior star with the Kirkwood Ski Education Foundation and now a member of the University of Utah ski team, has been named the No. 1 seed in giant slalom for the upcoming 2009 NCAA Division I Alpine Skiing Championships to be held March 12-14 at Sunday River, Maine.

Cohee, coming off major surgery less than 10 months ago, won both giant slaloms at the University of Denver Invitational held this past week at Winter Park Resort in Colorado. Those two wins, combined with his win in January at the Alaska Invitational, earned him the No. 1 ranking going into the NCAA Finals next month.

Competitors at the Winter Park events included the 2008 NCAA giant slalom champion, a Nor-AM winner and over two dozen high-ranking American and European alpine ski racers.

"To win one event at this level as a freshman is highly unusual," said University of Utah Head Alpine Coach Jaka Korencan. "To win back-to-back is almost unheard of. Nick is the best giant slalom skier in the nation right now at the NCAA level, and will be the one to beat at the championships in Maine.

"The fact that he is skiing so well less than 10 months after patella tendon surgery shows the tremendous dedication he had to get back in shape for this race. He even shattered his collar bone in September, requiring a plate and screws, but nothing seems to slow him down. He is one of the most amazing alpine ski racers I've ever coached."

The University of Utah is coming off a tremendously successful football season, ending with a dominating win over Alabama in the Sugar Bowl and finishing with the No. 2 national ranking. Their ski team, always among the top in the nation, will be battling Denver, Colorado, New Mexico, Vermont and Dartmouth for the 2009 NCAA Championship.

The Utes last won an NCAA skiing title in 2005.

Cohee, injured most of the second half of the 2007-08 racing campaign, elected to move on to NCAA skiing after surgery by Dr. Terry Orr this past April, foregoing another year of chasing a selection on the United States Ski Team. Now that he's skiing better than ever, is he considering another run at the national team?

"Right now my focus is on staying healthy, getting in a solid month of training, and helping Utah win another national championship in March," said Cohee from his dorm at the University in Salt Lake City. "Of course winning an individual national title would be awesome. As far as any thoughts about the national team, we'll see how it goes at the U.S. Nationals in Alaska, after the NCAA finals."

The NCAA Western Regionals are being held at Mt. Rose on Thursday and Friday, Feb. 19-20, where Cohee will be in action against the top collegiate racers from Nevada, Alaska, Colorado, Utah, Montana and New Mexico.