SALT LAKE CITY – Both of the Utah Valley University men's and women's cross country teams capped their regular seasons with runner-up finishes on Friday afternoon at the Utah Open, with the men's squad gaining 37 points and the women's finishing with 48 points.
Utah State and UVU were the only full men's squads that participated at the Utah Open, which was hosted by the University of Utah.
Sam Coleman led the Wolverines in the 6K race by placing 11th with a time of 19:54.8, followed by
Max Bailey (20:04.0) and
Blaise Miller (20:24.5), coming in 13th and 16th places, respectively.
Rounding out the race for the UVU men were
Kellis Johnson (19th, 21:07.3),
Troy Miller (21st, 21:25.1), and
Henry Giles (27th, 22:57.7).
Pacing the women's team on Friday for Utah Valley was
Kami Lynch who posted a top-10 finish with a time of 19:12.7 in the 5K race to place seventh overall. Coming in second and third for the Wolverines were
Cami Squires and
Emily Jones by placing 11th and 15th, respectively, with times of 19:30.4 and 19:35.0.
Kyandra Chandler (20th,19:50.3),
Kelsi Lindley (21st, 19:50.8),
Mackenzie Hess (24th, 20:06.5),
Elizabeth Wilcox (30th, 20:12.6), and
Rylee Holt (33rd, 20:25.1) followed suit for the Wolverines.
USU also won the women's race with 26 points, while the host Utes finished behind UVU to place third with a total of 57 points.
Reigning first team All-WAC performer
Hannah Branch, who is redshirting the season for UVU and competed unattached at the Utah Open, took second place honors with a time of 18:38.0 in the women's 5K race.
With the WAC Cross Country Championship set for next weekend, the majority of UVU's top men's and women's runners sat out the Utah Open. The Utah Open was contested at Sunnyside Park near the campus of the University of Utah.
Friday's in-state meet marks the end of the regular season for the Wolverines. UVU 2019 WAC Championship will take place on Saturday, Nov. 2 at Swope Park in Kansas City, Missouri. The Utah Valley men won last year's conference title, while the women's squad placed second. The NCAA Mountain Region Championship will then follow on Nov. 15 back in Salt Lake City.
