OREM, Utah – Utah Valley University head track & field and cross country coach Scott Houle has announced the signing of seven female distance runners to help bolster his women's track and cross country squads. All seven incoming athletes are current high school seniors from the state of Utah and will join the UVU track and cross country teams in the fall of 2021.  
 
Elisabeth Ferrell (Kaysville, Utah/Farmington HS), Hailey Kidd (West Jordan, Utah/Copper Hills HS), Alysa Lindley (Orem, Utah/Mountain View HS), Hope Preston (Kaysville, Utah/Davis HS), Heidi Sumsion (Springville, Utah/Springville HS), Madison White (Tremonton, Utah/Bear River HS) and Liz Zwahlen (Coalville, Utah/North Summit HS) will all come to Orem and run distance for the Wolverines. 
 
"I'm really excited about this group. These seven girls will definitely bring some depth to the team, and I'm also anticipating that a couple of them will become some of our team leaders in the near future," said Houle. "A number of them have been former state champions, all-state honorees, or top-five finishers in their respective events, and each one of them will help us out whether it be on the track or in cross country. We are thrilled that all seven of them have decided to join our program and I'm looking forward to big things from each one of them here at Utah Valley University." 
 
Ferrell, who hails from Kaysville, Utah and Farmington High School, recently posted a runner-up finish at region and a top-25 finish at the 2020 Utah 5A State Cross Country Championships by taking 23rd. She also won region in cross country in 2019, as well as finished fourth at state that same season and sixth in 2018. On the track, she won region in the 3200m in 2019 as well as placed third at state in the same event with a time of 11:09.41. She holds personal bests of 2:18 in the 800, 5:04 in the 1600, and 11:09 in the 3200 and is the Farmington High school record holder in the 800, 1600, 3200, and 4x400m relay.  
From West Jordan, Utah and Copper Hills High School, Kidd recently earned all-state accolades in cross country after placing 15th at the 2020 Utah 6A State Cross Country Championships. She has also compiled a trio of top-five finishes at cross country region in her prep career as well as a trio of top-30 state finishes. A three-time Copper Hills High Team MVP, she also holds personal records of 2:23 in the 800, 5:19 in the 1-mile, 11:38 in the 2-mile, 18:22 in the 3-mile, and 18:48 in the 5000. 
Lindley, who comes from right here in Orem, Utah and Mountain View High School, holds a trio of top-15 finishes at cross country regionals under her belt as well as a top-50 finish at the state cross country championships in 2019. She also helped her team to a third-place finish at state in 2020 after taking 63rd individually. Lindley holds personal records of 5:33 in the 1-mile (indoor), 18:49 in the 3-mile, and 19:48 in the 5K.
From Kaysville, Utah and Davis High School, Preston was the state runner-up at the 2019 Utah 6A State Cross Country Championships (18:08, 3-mile) and also won cross country regionals that same year (18:07, 3-mile). She also holds a trio of top-20 finishes at the state cross country championships and four top-15 finishes at region in cross country. Preston holds personal records of 2:16 in the 800, 5:05 in the 1600, and 18:06 in the 3-mile and has helped Davis High to a pair of region team titles in both cross country and track, as well as a runner-up state team finish in track and a third-place state finish in cross country. 
Sumsion, who hails from nearby Springville, Utah and Springville High School, has compiled a trio of top-10 finishes at the Utah 5A State Cross Country Championships during her prep career, which includes a runner-up finish at state as a freshman in 2017. She is also a three-time region champion in cross country after winning region her freshman, sophomore and junior seasons. She also posted a top-10 finish at the NXR Southwest Regional Championship in 2018 by placing 10th with a 5K personal record of 17:36. Sumsion holds other personal bests of 59.3 in the 400, 2:13 in the 800, 5:02 in the 1600, and 11:04 in the 3200 and has helped Springville High to a trio of consecutive state cross country team championships. 
From Tremonton, Utah and Bear River High School, White is a two-time all-state honoree in cross country after posting a pair of top-five finishes at the Utah 4A State Cross Country Championships. She is also a former region cross country champion and a two-time region runner-up. White holds personal bests of 5:23 in the 1600, 11:26 in the 3200, and 18:16 in the 3-mile and helped Bear River win a region team title in 2019.  
Zwahlen, who is from Coalville, Utah and North Summit High School, is a two-time Utah 2A State Cross Country champion and a one-time state cross country runner-up. She is also a former region cross country champion, a third-place region finisher and a 2020 All-State honoree. Zwahlen holds personal records of 2:24 in the 800, 5:24 in the 1-mile, 11:49 in the 2-mile, 18:29 in the 3-mile, and 18:34 in the 5K. She helped North Summit win a state team title both her freshman and sophomore seasons and is the younger sister of Maggie Zwahlen, who also runs cross country and track & field for the Wolverines.