University of Nevada Skiing FAQ
 
Q: Why did Nevada reinstate its skiing program?
A: The addition of men's and women's alpine skiing to the Wolf Pack varsity sports lineup as part of the University of Nevada, Reno's transition of assets and operations from Sierra Nevada University, a year-long process which has rebranded the previous SNU as the University of Nevada, Reno at Lake Tahoe. Skiing is considered a combined sport by the NCAA, so the addition gives the Wolf Pack 17 sports (10 women's, 6 men's and 1 combined).
 
Q: What conference will Nevada Skiing belong to?
A: Nevada will compete at the NCAA Division I level as a member of the Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Ski Association. Other RMISA members include Alaska Anchorage, Alaska Fairbanks, Colorado, Colorado Mountain College, Denver, Montana State, Utah, Westminster College and Wyoming.

Q: When is the NCAA skiing season?
A: The NCAA skiing season runs from late December through the NCAA Championships in mid-March. RMISA conference meets are held in January and February with the RMISA Championship held at the end of February. St. Lawrence, in conjunction with the Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA), will host the 2023 NCAA Skiing Championships at Whiteface Mountain and Mt. Van Hoevenberg in Lake Placid, New York, home of the 1980 Winter Olympic Games.
 
Q: What events will Nevada Skiing compete in? What does a typical skiing meet look like?
A: Nevada sponsors alpine skiing so its men's and women's skiing student-athletes will compete in both the slalom and giant slalom. In the slalom, competitors ski between sets of poles — known as gates —that are spaced apart at a certain distance. In the giant slalom, the gates are spaced further apart and the course is often longer. Each skier will make two runs in each event with the times from both runs being combined to determine their finish. They are awarded points based on their finish in each race. Many schools also sponsor Nordic skiing and earn points in both freestyle and classical cross country races. Those point totals are then added up and the team with the most points wins the event.
 
Q: Where will the Nevada Skiing team practice and compete? Will Nevada host any home events?
A:The Wolf Pack will practice at many local ski resorts, including Sky Tavern and Mt. Rose Ski Tahoe. The team will travel to races throughout the West, including Alaska, Colorado, Montana and Utah. Nevada will not host a home event in 2022-23 but will explore hosting a race in future years.
 
Q: Who is the Nevada Skiing coach?
A: Mihaela Kosi, who served as Sierra Nevada University's alpine skiing head coach since 2018, will assume the same role with the revived Wolf Pack program. From 2018-22, Kosi oversaw an Eagles program which captured a total of 16 team national titles at the U.S. Collegiate Ski and Snowboard Association (USCSA) Collegiate National Championships. The Eagles captured eight team titles at the 2022 championships (men's and women's combined Alpine, men's and women's alpine giant slalom, men's and women's slalom, men's and women's dual slalom).
 
Q: Who is going to be on the Nevada Skiing roster? How many scholarships does skiing have?
A: Nevada Skiing will carry rosters of 8-10 men and 8-10 women. This year's team will consist of student-athletes who had been competing at Sierra Nevada University as well as several new student-athletes and transfers. Skiing is an equivalency sport, and the NCAA allows institutions to award up to 6.3 scholarships for men's skiing and 7.0 scholarships for women's skiing.
 
Q: What is the history of Nevada Skiing?
A: Skiing was established at Nevada in 1936 by Wayne Poulsen, a Wolf Pack student who served as athlete-coach. The program has produced three Olympians (Dodie Post Gann, Glenn Jobe, Katerina Hanusova Nash), one Olympic coach (Lane Monroe), five individual national titles (won by a total of three student-athletes), 39 All-America honors and 14 top-10 team finishes at NCAA Championships (the last being a ninth-place finish in 2008). The program, which was cut in 2010, previously included Nordic (freestyle and classical) and Alpine events (slalom and giant slalom).
 
Nevada previously hosted three NCAA events including the 2007 and 2009 NCAA Skiing West Regionals and the 2004 NCAA Skiing Championship.
 
Q: How can I support Nevada Skiing?
A: Donations to support Nevada Skiing can be made by clicking here. Donations will directly impact the competitive excellence of our program and our student-athletes' experience, helping increase investment in critical areas such as scholarships, nutrition, enhanced equipment, team operations and more. More information about a special event supporting Nevada Skiing will be announced later this fall.
 
(updated August 30, 2022)