Anna Martin sets girls state meet record, American Fork, Morgan sweep titles; Corner Canyon boys, Desert Hills girls also win first championships

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

The Utah High School Activities Association state cross country championships showcased significant sweeps, the snapping of streaks, memorable first titles being achieved and ended with a wide range of emotions for the athletes and coaches at American Fork.

And in the center of all the dynamic performances and drama was Lehi junior Anna Martin.

With her 4A final right in the middle of the 12-race schedule Wednesday at Sugarhouse Park, Martin produced the most impressive female performance in the 40-year history of the girls state championships, covering the 3-mile course in 17 minutes, 15 seconds.

MERGED RESULTS | INTERVIEWS | PHOTOS

As Martin turned the corner and entered the Highland High stadium, she sprinted the final 100 meters to eclipse the 2015 mark of 17:24.7 set in the 5A final by former Davis star and current BYU standout Courtney Wayment.

Martin improved 47 seconds from her runner-up finish last season, adding a cross country championship to her 4A title in the 3,200 meters in May.

Mountain View senior Helena Miyazawa was the only other female runner to break 18 minutes for the meet, clocking 17:48 to finish second to Martin and elevate into the top 20 all-time in state history.

Perhaps the most thrilling girls outcome came in the 6A final, with American Fork rallying from a projected 13-point deficit in the final kilometer to knock off Lone Peak 73-81 and deny the Knights their first title after they had gone unbeaten in their first seven meets.

American Fork, which captured its third championship in four years and fifth overall, had all five scorers in the top 18 led by freshman Hazel Baird in ninth (18:58.8), producing an 11-second gap. Davis senior Ellie Lundgreen won the title in 18:06, with Lone Peak led by sophomore Reagan Gardner in third in 18:22.3.

The aftermath of American Fork’s third consecutive boys title was more tempered than its female counterparts.

Although the Cavemen cruised to an initial 53-point victory over rival Davis, with senior Luke Grundvig running the fastest time of the meet at 15:17.7 to capture the individual 6A title, officials notified American Fork boys coach Timo Mostert that senior Carson Clinger was disqualified for impeding Riverton senior Joey Nokes (15:24.9) during the final 50-meter stretch on the track.

Although the absence of Clinger’s third-place finish in 15:25 resulted in American Fork’s final margin over Davis being trimmed to 72-95, it subdued the celebration for the Cavemen, even though Mostert tied the state record for most boys championships with nine in the past decade, equaling the achievement of Mountain View coach Dave Houle.

It marked the fourth time in the past decade American Fork swept both titles in the highest classification, the other three occasions coming in 2009, 2014 and 2016 in 5A, with coach Bruno Hunziker winning his fifth girls championship overall.

Corner Canyon captured its first boys 5A title, relying on a second-place finish from junior Mark Boyle (15:32.7) and all five scorers in the top 16 to prevail over Skyridge by a 47-59 margin. Springville senior Grant Gardner won his first title following a pair of runner-up finishes in 15:26.8.

Springville secured its first girls championship since 1993, winning the 5A crown by a 73-105 margin over Timpview.

Woods Cross sophomore Carlee Hansen captured the individual title in 18:05.2, with Springville also relying on sophomores Heidi Sumsion (18:40.5) and AnnaBeth Templeman (18:47.4) placing fifth and eighth to prevail.

Desert Hills ended its championship drought by winning the girls 4A title with a 55-78 victory over Pine View. Seniors Bailey Brinkerhoff (18:26.4) and Samantha Nelson (18:31.1) finished fifth and sixth for the Thunder, the top team overall in the merge of all six girls finals.

Pine View captured its fourth boys title overall and first since 2010, winning the 4A crown with a 59-125 triumph over Canyon View. Senior Julien Canales led the Panthers by securing the individual title in 15:42.2.

Morgan enjoyed a historic sweep of its first championships in program history, becoming the first 3A school to win both titles in the same year since Park City in 2008.

Carson Wilkins’ second-place finish in 15:52.1 led the Trojans to a 61-76 victory over defending champion Emery. Grantsville junior Porter Whitworth won the 3A crown in 15:43.6.

Morgan also relied on a runner-up finish in the girls race from freshman Sophie Earley (19:33.8) and five scorers in the top 20 to prevail by a 62-89 margin over Grand County, which was led by the individual champion, sophomore Kylah Ricks (19:09.8).

It was a split decision for North Summit and Millard in the 2A finals.

Sophomore Katy Kelly won the girls 2A title in 18:58.4, leading six Millard athletes in the top 10, to halt North Summit’s five-year winning streak with a 22-54 victory.

David Fine (16:12.9), a transfer from Elizabeth High in Colorado, and Cody White (16:23.2) took the top two spots for North Summit in the boys 2A championship, helping North Summit repeat with a 29-67 victory over Millard.

Both individual champions in 1A repeated, with Monticello senior Adam Bunker winning in 16:32.8 and Panguitch junior Taylia Norris clocking 19:54.7 to lead their teams to titles.

But the manner in which the lineups secured championships were completely different.

Monticello swept the top four spots to score a perfect 10, since 1A only counts the performances of a team’s top four athletes.

Panguitch tied Milford 21-21 and needed a fifth-runner tiebreaker from 10th-place finisher Lacey Marshall to capture its first championship since 2014.