Skyridge boys secure first 6A crown by rallying past American Fork, with Lone Peak girls capturing back-to-back titles, in addition to Springville (5A) and Morgan (3A) achieving three-peats; Hansen (5A) and Ricks (3A) both win third consecutive girls individual championships, with Mortensen repeating in boys 5A

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

Two years ago at the Utah High School Activities Association state cross country meet, the Skyridge boys and Lone Peak girls both entered as the favorites in their respective classifications, each program in search of its first title.

But despite the impressive talent on both teams, they weren’t able to handle the emotional challenges in the latter stages of the championship races, resulting in a pair of runner-up finishes, Lone Peak in 6A and Skyridge in 5A.

Lone Peak broke through last season and captured its first 6A championship on the way to placing fourth at Nike Cross Nationals.

But Skyridge was still waiting for its moment in the spotlight and it came Thursday at the demanding 5-kilometer Soldier Hollow course in Midway.

INTERVIEWS

After Lone Peak overcame a late fall by senior leader Eliza Arrington to still place five scorers in the top nine in the girls 6A final, Skyridge overcame a projected five-point deficit at the 2-mile mark to rally for a 57-62 victory over American Fork and secure the program’s first championship.

American Fork junior Nate Jaster improved from seventh at the mile mark and fourth at the 2-mile split to produce a late surge and prevail in 16 minutes, 9.8 seconds.

But it was the struggles in the final mile of American Fork senior Brayden Packard, who slipped from second to 24th, that opened the door for Skyridge.

Creed Thompson, the leader at the 2-mile mark and reigning champion, held on for second in 16:20.4. Davin Thompson maintained his third-place position at the 2-mile split and followed his brother in 16:33.8, with junior Seth Wallgren moving up from sixth to fourth in the final mile, clocking 16:55.2.

Although American Fork placed five scorers in the top 25 in comparison to Skyridge having its first five athletes in the top 30, the trio of all-state performers combined with Packard’s performance helped the Falcons finally knock off nine-time champion American Fork.

There was no such team drama when it came to Lone Peak’s 29-74 victory over American Fork in the girls 6A final, despite Arrington’s pursuit of back-to-back individual titles coming to a sudden halt with 200 meters remaining.

Leading by more than 20 seconds at the 2-mile mark and still dominating the competition heading into the final straightaway, Arrington struggled with her balance and fell, creating an opening for Layton senior Emma Thornley.

With Lone Peak’s Eliza Mason and Reagan Gardner both in contention to win following Arrington’s fall, Thornley produced a strong surge in the final mile to improve from fourth and prevail in 20:14.8.

Thornley, a three-time all-state honoree, had never finished higher than seventh before Thursday, leading Layton to a third-place team performance with 105 points.

Mason (20:25.3) and Gardner (20:31.9) secured second and third, with Taylor Rohatinsky (20:41.1), Katie Bybee (20:45.6) and Anna Scholes (20:53.3) placing seventh, eighth and ninth for Lone Peak, which had all five scorers finish ahead of American Fork freshman Avalon Mecham, who was second at the 2-mile mark before taking 10th in 20:54.8.

Woods Cross senior Carlee Hansen became the only female athlete in 5A history to capture at least three consecutive individual titles, rallying past Timpview’s Brynn Esplin in the final mile to prevail in 19:55.

Hansen, a North Carolina commit, was also the 11th girls competitor all-time in the state to win at least three in a row in any classification.

Esplin, a transfer from La Cueva High in New Mexico, took second in 20:06.5. She placed fourth in the New Mexico state 5A final last season.

Springville rolled to its third consecutive girls 5A championship and fourth title in program history, placing five underclassmen in the top 15 to produce a 38-169 triumph against Timpanogos, which was led by a third-place finish from Raygan Peterson (20:38.3).

Sarah Galbraith (20:41.4) was fourth, Emily Sumsion (20:53.5) secured sixth, Lydia Templeman (21:14.4) took ninth, Laurissa Blakey (21:15.9) placed 10th and Lydia Felix (21:27.8) finished 15th for Springville, which had five athletes in front of Timpanogos’ second scorer.

Bountiful senior Dalton Mortensen repeated as boys 5A champion, clocking 16:41.5 in a solo effort throughout.

Mortensen led by five seconds at the mile and built the advantage to 12 seconds at the 2-mile mark and remained aggressive to become the first male athlete to achieve back-to-back 5A individual titles since American Fork’s Casey Clinger in 2015-16.

Farmington placed five scorers in the top 15, led by Simon Mitchell (17:11.4) finishing fourth, to defend its title with a 44-50 victory over Timpanogos.

Luke Mitchell (17:07.1) was second for Timpanogos, which had five athletes finish in the top 25.

Grand County senior Kylah Ricks joined Hansen among the 11 female competitors in state history to secure at least three consecutive championships, winning the eagerly anticipated 3A showdown with Morgan senior Oakley Olson by a 20:00.5 to 20:11 margin.

Ricks, the first girls individual to win at least three in a row in 3A since Judge Memorial’s Samantha Gaffney secured four straight from 2002-05, overcame a one-second deficit at the 2-mile mark to pull away from Olson late in the race.

Olson, a transfer from Northern High and former two-time 3A state champion in Maryland, helped the Trojans place all seven athletes in the top 25 in a 49-78 victory over North Sanpete that secured a third consecutive team title.

Freshman Mari Briggs (21:40.3) took third for North Sanpete.

Morgan’s Gabe Sargent also rallied in the final mile, surging ahead of Emery’s Bryar Meccariello to capture his first individual 3A boys championship in 17:34.1.

Meccariello took third in 17:50, but led three Emery athletes in the top 10 to propel the Spartans to a 66-67 triumph over Richfield and the program’s second championship in four years.

Sophomore Richard Crane, who was 33rd last year, placed second in 17:43.1 for Richfield, which had five scorers in the top 25, but couldn’t overcome Emery’s strength up front.

Day 1 Recap 

It was only fitting that the two Hurricane High athletes who were victorious Aug. 13 at Cedar High in the first cross country meet in Utah during the Coronavirus pandemic, also became the last two individual state champions in the 4A races 69 days later at the same venue Wednesday in Cedar City.

Junior Caila Odekirk became the first female athlete to repeat as girls 4A champion at the Utah High School Activities Association state meet since Provo’s Kate Hunter in 2014-15, covering the 3-mile course on the Cedar High campus in 17 minutes, 45.5 seconds.

Senior Joshua Armstrong became the first Hurricane male athlete to capture an individual state title since Tony Jones secured back-to-back 3A crowns in 2001-02, clocking 15:24.5.

Pine View continued its dominance behind Odekirk, placing all five scorers in the top 25 to produce a 72-92 victory in the 4A final, repeating as champion and winning its fourth title in five years. Sophomore Adri Baker was the lone all-state performer, finishing seventh for Pine View in 18:50.3.

Desert Hills, which won four consecutive 3A boys titles from 2013-16, captured its first 4A championship with a 44-73 triumph against host Cedar. Desert Hills placed four athletes in the top seven, including senior Carson Helmer finishing second in 15:31.3 and junior Carson Wall taking third in 15:57.

Rowland Hall senior Carson Burian, an Alabama commit, repeated as boys 2A champion with a 15:37.7 effort. Burian became the first male athlete to defend his title since Jace Richins of North Summit won back-to-back crowns in 2015-16.

North Summit senior Elizabeth Zwahlen captured back-to-back girls 2A titles by clocking 18:29.4, becoming the first female athlete in the classification to win consecutive championships since former North Summit teammate Sadie Sargent in 2016-17.

Erica Birk also won three in a row for North Summit from 2009-11.

Millard swept the 2A boys and girls team championships for the first time in program history, both increasing their totals to four titles overall.

Millard relied on three athletes placing in the top 10 in the girls race to prevail by a 44-51 margin over North Summit. Audrey Camp (19:31.9) was fourth, Katy Kelly (20:02.6) finished fifth and Kara Camp (21:11.1) took 10th for the Eagles, who extended their championship streak to three in a row.

Although sophomore Michael Ralphs was the only all-state athlete for Millard in the boys final, placing eighth in 16:49.9, the Eagles had all five scorers in the top 20 to hold off Rowland Hall by a 56-60 margin.

In the closest final of the day, the girls 1A final showcased a thrilling battle throughout, involving Panguitch sophomore Adelaide Englestead and Milford senior Kinley Spaulding.

Englestead had enough speed left in reserve, holding off Spaulding during the final 300 meters on the track, before prevailing by a 19:29.7 to 19:30.3 margin.

Englestead helped Panguitch achieve its eighth individual state title in nine years, following Whittni Orton (2012-15) and Taylia Norris (2017-19). Spaulding finished her career with four runner-up finishes at the state final.

Senior Porter Schoppe helped Panguitch sweep both individual championships, securing his first 1A title in dominant fashion with a 16:46.2 effort, the only athlete in the race under 17 minutes.

Panguitch also swept the individual titles last year with Luke Reeder and Norris.

The Bobcats also captured their second girls team championship in three years and sixth overall, placing six athletes in the top 11 – only four score in 1A – to triumph with a 16-point effort. Bryce Valley took second with 49 points.

Piute had all four scorers in the top nine of the boys 1A final, led by freshman Kade Severe in third (17:28.5), to secure its first team title since 2009 and fourth overall, following a 26-64 victory over Water Canyon.

TEAM CHAMPIONS

6A - Skyridge boys 57 points, Lone Peak girls 29 points | RESULTS

5A - Farmington boys 44 points, Springville girls 38 points | RESULTS

4A - Desert Hills boys 44 points, Pine View girls 72 points | RESULTS

3A - Emery boys 66 points, Morgan girls 49 points | RESULTS

2A - Millard boys 56 points, Millard girls 44 points | RESULTS

1A - Piute boys 26 points (score four), Panguitch 16 points (score four) | RESULTS