The student pilot was conducting a solo cross-country flight. He entered the traffic pattern at the destination airport and stated that, while on final approach to the runway, he was "crabbing" the airplane. The pilot stated that the airplane touched down hard, bounced, and floated sideways before touching down again on the right main landing gear, then the nose landing gear. The airplane's nose landing gear collapsed, and the airplane came to rest upright on the runway, resulting in substantial damage to the engine firewall. The owner of the airplane stated there were no mechanical malfunctions or anomalies that would have precluded normal operation.