Truckee’s Hannah Halvorsen had a career-best performance in World Cup racing on Saturday, leading the U.S. team with a seventh-place finish in Dresden, Germany.

Halvorsen, who finished second in the freestyle sprint quarterfinals, reached the semifinal round of World Cup racing for the first time in her career.

“I’m still a little in shock,” said Halvorsen in an interview with U.S. Ski & Snowboard. “It was surreal and exciting to make my first semis. The best part of the day was the confidence I gained by skiing in a semi and feeling like I was in the mix. I am grateful for this opportunity and cannot wait for more.”

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The top six skiers advance into the final round. Halvorsen was 0.25 seconds off of the sixth-place finisher.

Halvorsen, 23, competed Sunday in the team sprint competition and finished in 15th place.

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On the men’s side, North Tahoe’s JC Schoonmaker continued his strong start to the season, racing to a ninth-place finish in Saturday’s freestyle sprint in Dresden. Schoonmaker, 21, posted the third fastest qualifying time and has finished in the top 10 twice this season. He’d go on to compete in Sunday’s team sprint event, helping propel the U.S. squad to a ninth-place finish.

O’BRIEN, HURT SCORE POINTS IN COURCHEVAL

The women’s World Cup alpine season rolled into Courcheval, France, this week for a pair of giant slalom races.

Team Palisades Tahoe skiers AJ Hurt and Nina O’Brien were among four Americans to score World Cup points during Tuesday’s race.

O’Brien, 24, took 15th place, while Hurt, 21, was 28th. Mikaela Shiffrin led the U.S. effort, capturing her 72nd World Cup win.

Fellow Team Palisades Tahoe skier, Keely Cashman, didn’t qualify for the second giant slalom run, but was 44th in Sunday’s super-G event at Val d’Isere, France.

Justin Scacco is a staff writer with the Sierra Sun. He can be reached at jscacco@sierrasun.com