Given that the University of Alaska Fairbanks does not have any spring sports, the Nanooks’ athletics competition year is over aside from some of their cross country runners competing in a few track meets this month.
Here’s a review of how each UAF team performed and finished during the 2024-25 academic year, including one standout per team.
Men’s Basketball — 6th in Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC)
UAF’s first season in head coach Frank Ostanik’s second tenure was largely a success despite it unceremoniously ending with a 34-point loss on the heels of a five-game winning streak.
The Nanooks finished 14-14, their best record since 2016-17, and advanced to the six-team GNAC Men’s Basketball Championships for the first time since 2019-20. The ‘Nooks swept rival UAA for the first time since 2003 and beat four of the other five teams that advanced to the GNAC Men’s Basketball Championships. They’re now bringing in three freshmen to join several returnees on a team that didn’t feature any underclassmen this past season.
• Standout: Isaiah Saams-Hoy
Junior guard Isaiah Saams-Hoy earned second-team all-conference honors after leading the Nanooks in scoring, defensive rebounding, assists, steals, blocks and minutes in 2024-25. He finished top 10 in the GNAC in each of those categories. Saams-Hoy spent a pair of seasons at San Jose City College prior to transferring to UAF, so he’s expected to be back in Fairbanks next season.
Women’s Basketball — 10th in GNAC
UAF’s women recorded their most wins in a season since 2016-17 (six) but finished the season 1-19, leading to head coach Amy Donovan being fired after her third season. UAF started the season 5-1 but lost the last nine games of Donovan’s tenure and finished 1-17 in conference play for the second time in the past three years.
• Standout: Destiny Reimers
Senior guard Destiny Reimers, UAF’s only 2024-25 all-conference honorable mention honoree, led the team in scoring (14 points per game) and rebounds (6.4 per game) this past season and is graduating after starting 85 games between four years in Fairbanks.
Skiing — 10th at NCAA Championships (fifth nordic)
The Nanooks had a memorable ski season on multiple accounts, hosting two meets at their new on-campus competition trails and finishing as the only team in the top 10 at the NCAA Skiing Championships that doesn’t have an alpine ski team (only nordic).
UAF placed 10th in the overall team standings and finished fifth in the nordic standings at the NCAA Skiing Championships, as both the Nanook men and women placed sixth.
• Standout: Kendall Kramer
In the last race of her collegiate career, Kendall Kramer earned her first NCAA title. She won the women’s 20-kilometer freestyle mass start at the 2025 NCAA Skiing Championships, doing so by a sizable margin. Kramer recorded a top-10 finish at the NCAA Skiing Championships for five years in a row and was a three-time NCAA cross country running All-American as well, including finishing as the Division II national runner-up in 2024.
On the men’s side, UAF sophomore Ben Dohlby joined Kramer as a first-team All-American this winter, placing fourth in the men’s 20-kilometer freestyle mass start, while junior Philipp Moosmayer came away with two All-American honors this year. Neither had been All-Americans entering this winter.
Women’s Cross Country — 13th at NCAA Championships
The UAF women’s cross country squad had a historic 2024 season from both a team and individual perspective. Not only did the Nanooks reach the NCAA Championships for the first time since 2011, but upon arriving there, they recorded their best NCAA Championships finish in program history (13th). The ‘Nooks also finished runner-up at the 2024 GNAC Cross Country Championships, their best conference meet result in program history.
• Standout: Rosie Fordham
Between seniors Rosie Fordham and Kendall Kramer both finishing in the top 10 at the NCAA Cross Country Championships, the Nanooks had the best one-two punch in the field by a wide margin, finishing with nearly half as many points as the top two runners for team champion Adams State.
Fordham, who became a cross country All-American for the second year in a row, was also the 2024 NCAA Division II West Region champion and the GNAC runner-up.
Men’s Cross Country — 7th at GNAC Championships
While the Nanooks’ women’s cross country team enjoyed a historic season, the UAF men have been steadily improving as well. In 2024, they matched their best finish at the GNAC Championships since 2014, placing seventh. They also upset Alaska Anchorage in their season opener and placed 19th at the NCAA Division II West Region Championships after finishing 22nd there in 2023 and not sending enough men to field a full team for several seasons before that.
• Standout: Ben Browning
As a true freshman, Ben Browning emerged as the Nanooks’ top finisher in half of their meets, including their first and final meets. He displayed a level of consistency that belied his experience level as well, never finishing lower than third in UAF’s team order.
Hockey — Independent (no conference standings or postseason appearance)
UAF took a small step back on the ice for the second year in a row — finishing just below .500 (12-14-6), and head coach Erik Largen spent a few series away from the bench — after bringing in 19 newcomers (out of 31 rostered players). Still, the Nanooks earned a couple of ranked wins (over Notre Dame and Union College) and won a 14th consecutive Governor’s Cup over rival Alaska Anchorage.
• Standout: Broten Sabo
Despite being an underclassman and a defenseman, sophomore Broten Sabo nearly finished first on the team in points. He recorded eight goals (third-most on the team) and 13 assists (second-most) and was one of seven players (the only Nanook) to be named an NCAA Division I Independent All-Star.
Rifle — 3rd at NCAA Championships
In 2024-25, the UAF rifle team placed third at the NCAA Championships for the second year in a row. The Nanooks were ranked No. 1 in the Collegiate Rifle Coaches Association poll for several weeks during the season and led the NCAA Championships after the first day by winning the smallbore national title. The ‘Nooks also won their first Patriot Rifle Conference title since 2022 and broke their program aggregate record multiple times.
• Standout: Cecelia Ossi
Graduate transfer Cecelia Ossi came to Fairbanks via the University of Nebraska as the 2023 smallbore national champion. However, after a somewhat slow start to the season, few could have predicted her breaking the Nanooks’ individual aggregate score record, tying the individual smallbore record and becoming the Nanooks’ first individual smallbore national champion since 2014.
Volleyball — 2nd in GNAC
UAF narrowly missed out on advancing to the postseason but enjoyed an exceedingly successful season on the volleyball court. According to UAF Athletics, the Nanooks matched their most wins (21) in a season in program history and posted their best win percentage (.750) in program history. The ‘Nooks finished runner-up in the GNAC and swept rival UAA for the first time since 2008. UAF won nine of its last 10 games en route to a 21-7 record.
• Standout: Karli Nielson
In her fifth and final season at UAF, outside hitter Karli Nielson racked up accolades. After leading the GNAC in kills (372) and points (431), she was named GNAC First Team All-Conference, AVCA All-Region and AVCA All-American Honorable Mention.
Swimming — 5th in PCSC
UAF recorded a 4-2 record in the pool across dual meets, defeating Fresno Pacific University and Westmont College, and ended its season with a fifth-place finish at the Pacific Collegiate Swim & Dive Conference (PCSC) Championships, its best since 2013-14.
• Standout: Tori Shoemaker
UAF graduate student Tori Shoemaker participated in the CSCAA College National Open Water Championship 5k race in Biscayne Bay, Florida over winter break. While competing in a distance far longer than what’s offered in NCAA competition, not only did she place 12th among all swimmers in the event; she finished with the fastest time among all NCAA Division II swimmers.
