Men's Cross Country | 10/2/2025 9:00:00 AM

(St. George, Utah - Oct. 2, 2025) - The Trailblazer cross country teams make the short trip to Cedar City for the Southern Utah Color Country Invitational on Saturday.

Who | Southern Utah Color Country Invitational
When | Saturday, Oct. 4 – Men's 6K - 10:30 a.m. | Women's 4K - 11 a.m.
Where | Cedar Ridge Golf Course - Cedar City, Utah
Social Media | Instagram + Twitter (X) + #UtahTechBlazers

PARTICIPATING TEAMS
Southern Utah, Utah Tech, Utah Valley, Snow College

TEAMS IN THE USTFCCCA NATIONAL RANKINGS

• Men
  • Utah Valley is ranked No. 8 in the Mountain Region.
• Women
  • Utah Valley is ranked No. 9 in the Mountain Region.

GLANCE BACK AT THE UC RIVERSIDE INVITATIONAL
The Trailblazers return to action after racing last Saturday (Sept. 27) at the UC Riverside Invitational with the women finishing 11th as a team and the men coming in 17th.

The women were led by junior Averie Perriton with a 15th-place finish in the 219-women field clocking the third-fastest 6K time in program history with a time of 20:52.7.

Redshirt junior Makayla Pitcher was the Trailblazers' second-fastest finisher coming in 64th (21:28.5), good for the ninth-fastest time in program history.

On the men's side, junior Ryan Hatch was the top finisher placing 64th in a field of 223 with a time of 24:54.8 in the 8K.

Dawson Leffler (24:59.3) and Mordechai Yadegar (25:12.0) also notched top 100 finishes placing 76th and 99th, respectively.

LOOK BACK AT THE NAU GEORGE KYTE CLASSIC
Opening the season on Aug. 30 at the NAU George Kyte Classic, the women took second as a team while the men finished fourth at the five-team race in Flagstaff.

The women saw six Trailblazers finish in the top 20 while running the 2.5 mile course while the men placed three in the top 20 in the 4.5-mile race.

Perriton was the top finisher on the women's side coming in 10th breaking the 16-minute mark clocking a time of 15:59.8.

On the men's side, Hatch notched a ninth-place finish with a time of 23:01.1.

2024 SUU COLOR COUNTRY INVITATIONAL RECAP
The Trailblazers will compete at the SUU Color Country Invitational for a fifth straight season.

At last year's version, both the men and women came in third place.

Perriton is the top returner on the women's side after taking 23rd finishing with a time of 15:02.33 in the 4K.

Adri Bird, Kambrie Wilkinson and Charly Murie also finished in the top 35.

On the men's side, Hatch is the top returner after a 15th place finish saw him post the second-fastest 6K time in program history clocking a time of 19:03.34.

Aiden Hardy, Dawson Leffler and Luke Howell also posted top 50 finishes.

2025 SLATE
For the fifth straight season as members of Division I, the Trailblazers will compete in four regular season meets.

With its first two meets, the NAU George Kyte Classic & UC Riverside Invitational in the books, the Trailblazers will close out the regular season heading back to California for the UCR Highlander Invitational on Oct. 18.

The WAC Championships are set for Oct. 31 in Arlington, Texas at the Harold Patterson Sports Complex with the postseason continuing at the NCAA West Regional Championships in Sacramento on Nov. 14.

The NCAA Championships will be Nov. 22 hosted by the University of Missouri in Columbia at the Gans Creek Cross Country Course.

LOOK AT THE 2025 ROSTER
The Trailblazer men's squad brings back eight returners while welcoming four newcomers this season.

With only one senior, Dennis Speaks, the remaining returners are made up of five juniors, Aiden Hardy, Ryan Hatch, Luke Howell, Dawson Leffler & Collin Manning, and a pair of sophomores in Tyler Mullins and Rex Martin.

The newcomers are made up of four freshmen in Carter Frost (Layton, Utah), Grayson Peterson (Milton, Ga.), Payton Wilkins (St. George, Utah) and Mordechai Yadegar (Logandale, Nev.), who will all look to contribute in their first seasons as Trailblazers.

On the women's side, the Trailblazers also bring back eight returners and welcome four newcomers.

Two seniors (Kelly Denninghoff & Savannah Rydalch), four juniors (Erin McKinnon, Charly Murie & Averie Perriton), two sophomores (Kambrie Wilkinson & Adri Bird) and redshirt freshman (Makayla Boulton) headline the returners while the newcomers are a pair of freshmen, a sophomore and a redshirt junior.

The pair of freshmen are Zoie Adcox (Salado, Texas) & Natalie Roberts (Mesa, Ariz.), sophomore Hailee Phillips arrives at Utah Tech after spending the 2022 season at Utah Valley and going on a two-year mission.

The final newcomer is Southern Utah transfer Makayla Pitcher, who joined the UT track and field program in January 2025, and is set for her first cross country season as a Trailblazer this fall.

2024 IN REVIEW
The Trailblazers are coming off a fifth-place finish for the women at the WAC Championships while the men's team took seventh.

The top returners for the women are Perriton, Bird, Murie & McKinnon as they all raced in all six races last season outside of McKinnon, who competed in five meets.

On the men's side, Hatch comes back as the top returner after earning Second Team All-WAC honors finishing 17th overall and notched the third-fastest 8K in program history with a time of 24:08.30.

Other top returners include Hardy, Leffler, Manning & Speaks, who each competed in all six races outside of Speaks, who did not compete at the NCAA West Regional Championship.

WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY/TRACK & FIELD HEAD COACH JUSTIN DECKER
Justin Decker (Utah Tech, 2008) is in his 15th season at the helm of the Utah Tech cross country program.

During his tenure at Utah Tech, Decker has mentored 25 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.

UTAH TECH ANNOUNCES MEN'S TRACK AND FIELD PROGRAM STARTING IN 2027
On Aug. 7, Utah Tech Executive Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Ken Beazer announced the addition of a men's track & field program ahead of the 2026-27 academic year when the Trailblazers join the Big Sky Conference.  
 
With the addition of men's track & field, which begins on July 1, 2026, UT will now sponsor 16 intercollegiate athletic programs.

The men's track & field program will begin competition in distance events during the 2026-27 indoor and outdoor seasons.

Utah Tech will proceed with incremental additions in events and coaching staff in the coming years on the program's path to becoming a full-fledged men's track & field team.

Utah Tech will join a strong track & field cohort in the Big Sky Conference with the Trailblazers representing the 11th men's track & field squad, joining Eastern Washington, Idaho, Idaho State, Montana, Montana State, Northern Arizona, Northern Colorado, Portland State, Southern Utah and Weber State.

Josh Thompson will serve as the first head coach of the men's distance track & field program, as well as head coach of the men's cross country team.

Meanwhile, Justin Decker will remain as head coach of the Trailblazer women's cross country team and will continue to coach the women's distance track events.  

"I'm grateful to Utah Tech and the athletic department for the opportunity to lead the men's cross country and track programs, and I'm truly honored to step into this role," Thompson said. "My goal is to build a culture where athletes strive for greatness on the track, in the classroom and in life. We'll pursue excellence with passion, discipline and purpose, while also working to positively impact the Utah Tech community. The best is still ahead!" 
 
A former collegiate distance runner at Oklahoma State, Thompson won five individual Big 12 titles, qualifying for the NCAA Championships five times before signing a professional contract with Nike and joined the Bowerman Track Club in Portland, Oregon.

Over his seven-year professional career, Thompson has competed in two World Championships and was a World Finalist in both the 2022 Indoor World 1,500 meters in Serbia and the 2022 Outdoor World 1,500 meters in Eugene, Ore. and recently competed in the 2025 USA Track and Field Championships in the 1500 meters, clocking a time of 3:52.04 in Eugene.

UP NEXT
The Trailblazers return to California for the UC Riverside Highlander Invitational on Oct. 18 with the men competing in an 8K and the women in a 6K.