Men's Cross Country | 10/2/2024 11:00:00 AM

(St. George, Utah - Oct. 2, 2024) - The Utah Tech cross country teams are back in action on Friday making the short trip to Cedar City for the Southern Utah Color Country Invitational.

Who | Southern Utah Color Country Invitational
When | Friday, Oct. 4 – Women's 4K - 8 a.m. MT | Men's 6K - 8:30 a.m. MT
Where | Cedar Ridge Golf Course - Cedar City, Utah
Social Media | Instagram + Twitter (X) + #UtahTechBlazers

PARTICIPATING TEAMS
Southern Utah, Utah Tech, Utah Valley

• Men
  • Utah Valley - No. 11 - USTFCCCA Mountain Region
  • Southern Utah - No. 13 - USTFCCCA Mountain Region
• Women
  • Utah Valley - No. 30 - USTFCCCA National Poll
  • Utah Valley - No. 5 - USTFCCCA Mountain Region
  • Southern Utah - No. 15 - USTFCCCA Mountain Region

TRAILBLAZERS POST THREE TOP FIVE TIMES AT UC RIVERSIDE INVITATIONAL
On the women's side, junior Lexi Larsen was the Blazers' top finisher clocking the fourth-fastest 6K time in program history to come in 55th and she knocked off more than 35 seconds off her previous best.

Not competing as a full men's team in the invite race, sophomores Kyle Neuenschwander and Ryan Hatch both posted top 75 finishes and clocked the second and third-fastest 8K times in program history, respectively.

Neuenschwander placed 49th posting a time of 24:16.5 while Hatch finished 73rd in a time of 24:31.8.

Seven Trailblazer men competed in the men's 8K open division race with Trent Holiday being the top finisher placing 32nd with a time of 25:29.1.

Three more Trailblazer women raced in the women's 5K open division led by junior Kinley Spaulding.

LOOK BACK AT UVU INVITATIONAL
The Trailblazers opened up the season at the Utah Valley Invitational on Aug. 30 finishing fifth as a team on the men's side and seventh on the women's side.

The men were highlighted by a program record time of 14:34.8 in the 5K by sophomore Neuenschwander, who finished ninth overall.

The women were led by Larsen, who was the the Blazers' top runner finishing 42nd overall at 18:11.4. Larsen was followed by Averie Perriton in 44th, Adri Bird in 45th and freshman Kambrie Wilkinson in 60th.

On the men's side, sophomore newcomer Ryan Hatch was the Trailblazers' second finisher coming in 29th with the second-fastest 5K time in program history (14:59.2).

In total, 12 Trailblazer women and 11 Trailblazer men saw action in the meet with four newcomers on both sides making their Utah Tech debuts.

2024 SLATE
Much like 2023, the 2024 schedule will feature four regular season races.

After Friday's action, the Trailblazers will finish the regular season heading back to California for the Santa Clara Bronco Invitational on Oct. 19 in Sunnyvale.

The WAC Championships are set for Nov. 1 back in Orem at Lakeside Park while the postseason continues at the NCAA West Regional Championships in Colfax, Wash. on Nov. 15.

The NCAA Championships will be hosted by the University of Wisconsin in Madison on Nov. 23.

GLACE BACK AT THE 2023 SOUTHERN UTAH COLOR COUNTRY INVITE
Six men and six women return after competing at the 2023 version of the SUU Color Country Invitational.

Neuenschwander led the men's side with a fifth-place finish clocking a time of 19:10.21 in the 6K.

Dawson Leffler, Holiday, Aiden Hardy, Collin Manning and Luke Howell also competed in the meet for the Trailblazers.

Perriton is the Blazers' top returning finisher on the women's side, coming in 12th in the 4K in a time of 15:13.15.

Larson, Charly Murie, Erin McKinnon, Addie Payne and Kinley Spaulding also all competed at the meet.

HEAD COACH JUSTIN DECKER
Justin Decker (Utah Tech, 2008) is in his 14th season at the helm of the Utah Tech cross-country program. During his tenure at Utah Tech, Decker has mentored 24 all-conference, seven all-region, and two All-American athletes (Rachel Young in 2012 and Billie Hatch in 2019). In addition, he has earned certification as a USA Track & Field Level 1 Coach and USTFCCCA Endurance Event Specialist. 

Coach Decker grew up in St. George and graduated from Pine View High School in 2004. After high school, he attended then-Dixie State and competed on the cross country team during the 2007 and 2008 seasons while serving as the team's captain and SAAC representative. He graduated from Utah Tech in 2008 with a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration and graduated from Southern Utah University with a Master's degree in Business Administration in 2013.

2024 ROSTER
The Trailblazer men's squad brings back eight returners while welcoming four newcomers.

With Trent Holiday being the lone senior on the roster, the Trailblazers return seven sophomores. On the newcomers side, they are split between junior college transfers Dennis Speaks (College of Southern Nevada) and Ryan Hatch (Coconino CC) along with freshmen Tyler Mullins (St. George) and Noah Orton(Meridian, Idaho).

On the women's side, Utah Tech brings back 10 returners with four freshmen, Makayla Boulton (Provo, Utah), Isabela Coffman (Klamath Falls, Ore.), Maren Leffler (Preston, Idaho) and Kambrie Wilkinson(Salem, Utah) joining the team this season.

UP NEXT
The Trailblazers close out the regular season heading to California for the Santa Clara Bronco Invitational on Oct. 19 at Baylands Park.