LOGAN, Utah – Utah State’s men’s and women’s cross country teams swept the team titles at the Steve T. Reeder Memorial Invitational on Friday. Freshman Joshua Armstrong paced the Aggie men with a third-place finish, while senior Sammi Lee led a strong quartet of Aggie women which finished second through fifth.
“The race plan for both teams was to put ourselves in the top group and then try and be patient until the last half of the race,” said Artie Gulden, USU’s director of track & field and cross country.
The USU women led off the meet with a dominating team performance, tallying 15 points. Lee paced the Aggies’ lead pack with a time of 18:31.47, followed in succession by junior Malia Lowe at 18:43.73, freshman Ava Trimble at 18:49.69, and freshman Cailey Bracken at 18:52.73. Freshman Alayna Wardle rounded out the scoring with an eighth-place finish, clocking in at 19:05.56 to edge out fellow freshman Meredith Sanford by 0.15 seconds, while freshman Jane Williams rounded out the top 10 with a finishing time of 19:10.94.
“I think the ladies did that very well,” Gulden said. “We were able to break things apart and collectively dominate the race towards the end.”
The Aggie men capped off the invitational with a strong team showing, earning 21 points to best Salt Lake Community College by 23 points. Armstrong’s third-place time of 21:29.56 led the way. Joining him in the top 10 were sophomore John Simmons in eighth place and senior Caleb Armstrong in ninth place, clocking in at 21:44.56 and 21:58.06, respectively. Sophomore Drew Hogan finished in 15th place with a time of 22:19.71, and junior Eli Gregory followed directly behind him with a time of 22:27.05 to finish out the scoring. Cross country alumnus Max Wehrli, who is set to compete for USU’s indoor and outdoor track and field programs in the spring, finished in second place with a time of 21:10.20.
“The guys at the front made the race a little tougher earlier on,” said Gulden. “That broke us apart sooner than we wanted to, but the guys still found each other and really worked well together to get it done as a team.”
Utah State returns to action on Saturday, Oct. 19, when the Aggies travel to Madison, Wisconsin, for the 2024 Wisconsin Pre-Nationals.
For more information on the Utah State cross country programs, follow the Aggies on Twitter at @USUTF_XC, on Facebook at USUTrack and on Instagram at USUTF_XC.
STEVE T. REEDER MEMORIAL INVITATIONAL | October 11, 2024 | Logan, Utah
Women’s 5K Team Results
1. UTAH STATE – 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, (6), (7) – 15
2. College of Southern Idaho – 8, 9, 10, 12, 18, (19), (20) – 57
3. Salt Lake Community College – 11, 13, 14, 15, 16, (17), (21) – 69
4. Montana State- Billings – 22, 23, 24, 27, 28, (29), (31) – 124
5. Westminster – 25, 26, 30, 32, 33 – 146
Women’s Top-Five Finishers: 1. Emma Wilhelm (Unattached) – 18:28.00; 2. Sammi Lee (USU) – 18:31.47; 3. Malia Lowe (USU) –18:43.73; 4. Ava Trimble (USU) – 18:49.69; 5. Cailey Bracken (USU) – 18:52.73.
Utah State Women’s Results: 2. Sammi Lee – 18:31.47; 3. Malia Lowe – 18:43.73; 4. Ava Trimble – 18:49.69; 5. Cailey Bracken – 18:52.73; 8. Alayna Wardle – 19:05.56; 9. Meredith Sanford – 19:05.71; 10. Jane Williams – 19:10.94; 19. Brooklyn Hill – 19:37.95; 29. Sara Abbott – 19:59.08; 35. Allie Black – 20:15.21.
Men’s 7K Team Results
1. UTAH STATE – 1, 3, 4, 6, 7 – 21
2. Salt Lake Community College – 2, 5, 10, 13, 14, (15), (20) – 44
3. College of Southern Idaho – 8, 9, 12, 16, 17, (21), (22) – 62
4. Westminster – 11, 18, 19, 23, 24, (25) – 95
Men’s Top-Five Finishers: 1. Noah Jenkins (Unattached) – 21:08.50; 2. Max Wehrli (UNA- USU) – 21:10.20; 3. Joshua Armstrong (USU) – 21:29.56; 4. Zachary Erikson (Unattached) – 21:34.01; 5. Hayden Gray (Unattached) – 21:36.92.
Utah State Men’s Results: 3. Joshua Armstrong – 21:29.56; 8. John Simmons – 21:44.68; 9. Caleb Armstrong – 21:58.06; 15. Drew Hogan – 22:19.71; 16. Eli Gregory – 22:27.05.
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