GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — Colorado School of Mines Club Cycling continued its historic run at the 2026 USA Cycling Collegiate Mountain Bike National Championships, capturing its eighth consecutive and 10th overall Club Mountain Bike National Championship at Powderhorn Mountain Resort.

The Orediggers finished atop the Club Team Omnium standings with 640 points, ahead of second-place Colorado Boulder, which finished with 588 points. Mines also claimed the Men's Team Omnium championship with 298 points and finished third in the Women's Team Omnium with 262 points.

Mines' championship performance was highlighted by three individual national titles and a team relay victory. Ben Mackenzie won the Club Men's Dual Slalom championship, Ben Stokes captured the Club Men's Cross-Country Olympic (XCO) title, and Trevor Kornmesser claimed the Club Men's Downhill championship. The Orediggers also won the Club Team Relay, bringing their total to four event victories.

The championship extends Mines' streak of national titles dating back to 2019, giving the Orediggers eight consecutive championships and their 10th overall title in program history.

Mackenzie Opens Nationals with Dual Slalom Championship

Mines began the national championships with a victory in Men's Dual Slalom, as Ben Mackenzie advanced through the elimination bracket to claim the national title.

Mackenzie entered the competition following a strong fall season and improved on his silver-medal performance at the 2025 national championships to capture the top spot on the podium.

Several other Orediggers contributed strong finishes in Dual Slalom. Blue Johnson placed ninth, while Brendan Giles finished 11th and Conner Theine took 15th, giving Mines four riders inside the top 15.

Joey Kan finished 25th, and Trevor Kornmesser placed 32nd to round out the Mines men's results.

In Women's Dual Slalom, Aila Harmala advanced to the Round of 16 and finished 11th.

The opening victory gave Mines its first individual national championship of the weekend and established momentum heading into the remaining events.

Stokes Claims Men's XCO National Championship

The Orediggers continued their success in Men's Cross-Country Olympic competition, where Ben Stokes earned another individual national championship for Mines.

Stokes finished more than two minutes ahead of the runner-up to claim the Club Men's XCO title, adding to his national championship résumé after winning the Club Men's Short Track championship in 2025.

Blake Hoffer finished 16th in the men's field, followed closely by Myles Scott in 17th. Dillon Hall placed 26th, while Brendan Giles finished 34th.

Austin Kaukl added a 53rd-place finish, and Nathaniel Yen rounded out the Mines competitors in 62nd.

The women's XCO race also produced strong results for the Orediggers, with Anna Haemer earning a spot on the national championship podium.

Haemer finished third, while teammate Mahika Peterson followed in fourth, giving Mines two riders among the top four in the women's field.

Rachael King also contributed a 15th-place finish, while Kate Rizzo placed 19th.

The results added valuable points to Mines' team championship effort and continued the Orediggers' success across both men's and women's cross-country competition.

Kornmesser Wins Downhill National Championship

Mines added its third individual national title of the weekend in Men's Downhill, where Trevor Kornmesser delivered the fastest run of the Club Men's field.

Kornmesser completed the course in 5:20.78, finishing more than two seconds ahead of the runner-up to secure the national championship.

Brendan Giles narrowly missed the podium, finishing fourth with a time of 5:29.22, giving Mines two riders inside the top four.

Connor Theine finished 14th in 5:35.66, followed closely by Blue Johnson in 15th at 5:36.95.

Mackenzie added a 22nd-place finish, while Joey Kan placed 26th to round out the Mines men's downhill results.

In Women's Downhill, Aila Harmala earned another podium finish for the Orediggers, taking third place with a time of 5:55.76.

Harmala finished just 1.82 seconds behind the national champion, adding another strong result to Mines' championship weekend.

Orediggers Earn Strong Short Track Finishes

Mines continued to collect points in the Short Track Cross-Country (XCC) races, with several riders finishing near the front of their respective fields.

Myles Scott led the Orediggers in Men's XCC, finishing fourth, while Stokes followed in fifth to give Mines two riders among the top five.

Brendan Giles placed 18th, while Dillon Hall finished 23rd and Nathaniel Yen took 25th. Blake Hoffer also represented Mines in the event.

The women's short-track race featured another podium finish from Anna Haemer, who placed second, finishing just 17 seconds behind the national champion.

Rachael King also turned in an impressive performance, finishing fourth and giving Mines two riders inside the top four.

Mahika Peterson finished 16th, while Kate Rizzo placed 24th to complete the Orediggers' women's short-track results.

The performances helped Mines continue building its advantage in the overall team standings.

Mines Captures Club Team Relay Championship

The Orediggers added another national title in the Club Team Relay, finishing first with a time of 11:32.

Mines finished 25 seconds ahead of second-place Utah and 29 seconds ahead of third-place Colorado Boulder to secure the championship.

The relay victory marked the team's fourth event title of the weekend and provided another important contribution to Mines' overall championship total.

Giles Finishes Third in Individual Omnium

In addition to the individual race victories, Brendan Giles earned a third-place finish in the Club Men's Individual Omnium standings.

Giles collected 128 points across the four individual disciplines, with his fourth-place downhill finish and 11th-place Dual Slalom result highlighting his weekend.

His performance reflected Mines' depth across both gravity and cross-country events, contributing to the team's overall success.

The Orediggers also finished first in the Men's Team Omnium standings with 298 points, while the women's team placed third with 262 points.

Eight Straight, 10 Overall National Championships

With victories in Dual Slalom, Men's XCO, Men's Downhill and the Club Team Relay, Mines finished the national championships with four event titles and multiple podium performances.

The Orediggers' 640 points secured the overall Club Team Omnium championship, finishing 52 points ahead of Colorado Boulder.

The title marks Mines' eighth consecutive Club Mountain Bike National Championship and 10th overall national championship in program history, extending a championship streak that began in 2019.

From Mackenzie's opening Dual Slalom victory to Kornmesser's Downhill championship and the team's relay success, the Orediggers demonstrated their depth across every discipline throughout the weekend.

With another national championship secured, Mines Club Cycling returns to Golden having extended its historic streak to eight consecutive titles and continued its success as one of the nation's premier collegiate club mountain biking programs.