Men's Cross Country | 11/12/2025 12:30:00 PM

(St. George, Utah - Nov. 12, 2025) - The Trailblazer cross country teams continue postseason action on Friday morning at the NCAA West Regional Championships hosted by Sacramento State.

Who | NCAA West Regional Championships
When | Friday, Nov. 14 – Women's 6K - 10 a.m. MT | Men's 10K - 11 a.m. MT
Where | Haggin Oaks Golf Complex - Sacramento, Calif.
Social Media | Instagram + Twitter (X) + #UtahTechBlazers

PARTICIPATING TEAMS
Utah Tech, Stanford, UC Davis, Arizona, California Baptist, Fresno State, Idaho, Long Beach State, San Diego, Washington State, Boise State, San Francisco, Eastern Washington, Santa Clara, Portland State, St. Mary's, UCLA, Pacific, Washington, Gonzaga, UC Irvine, CSUN, Oregon State, Cal Poly, Cal State Fullerton, Sacramento State, Portland, Oregon, Cal, Seattle U, UCSB, Pepperdine, UC San Diego, UC Riverside, UNLV (women only), Hawaii (women only), LMU (women only), USC (women only), San Diego State (women only)

TEAMS IN THE USTFCCCA NATIONAL RANKINGS (Nov. 3 Region & Nov. 4 National)

• Men - West Region
  • 1. Oregon - No. 7 nation
  • 2. Washington State - No. 11
  • 3. California Baptist - No. 17
  • 4. Boise State - No. 29
  • 5. Stanford - RV
  • 6. Gonzaga
  • 7. Portland
  • 8. Cal Poly
  • 9. UC Davis
  • 10. Washington
  • 11. UCLA
  • 12. Saint Mary's
  • 13. Arizona
  • 14. San Francisco
  • 15. Cal
• Women
  • 1. Oregon - No. 4 nation
  • 2. Stanford - No. 14
  • 3. Washington - No. 18
  • 4. Washington State - No. 24
  • 5. Gonzaga - No. 28
  • 6. Boise State - RV
  • 7. California Baptist
  • 8. Oregon State
  • 9. Cal Poly
  • 10. San Francisco
  • 11. UCLA
  • 12. Cal
  • 13. UC Irvine
  • 14. UC San Diego
  • 15. UC Davis

HAGGIN OAKS GOLF COMPLEX
This year is the sixth time that Haggin Oaks GC has served as host of the West Regional.

The course has also been home to the NCAA Division II Championships in 2019 and 2024.

TRAILBLAZERS FINISH FIFTH & WOMEN SEVENTH AT WAC CHAMPIONSHIPS
The Trailblazer women finished fifth and the men placed seventh at the WAC Cross Country Championships hosted by UT Arlington on Oct. 31 at the Harold Patterson Sports Complex.

Utah Tech was led by junior Ryan Hatch who finished 24th in the 8K with a time of 24:43.9.

That mark ranks as the 10th-fastest time in program history and was followed by three more Trailblazers breaking the 26-minute mark with Mordechai Yadegar coming in 34th, Dawson Leffler in 37th and Grayson Peterson in 44th.

On the women' side, redshirt junior Makayla Pitcher led the way with a 22nd-place finish posting a time of 21:42.6 in the 6K.

Adri Bird (23rd), Averie Perriton (25th) and Hailee Phillips (26th) also finished in the top 30 while all breaking the 22-minute plateau.

UTAH TECH AT 2024 NCAA WEST REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS
The Trailblazer men placed 22nd and the women took 32nd in their first NCAA West Regional Championships last season in Colfax, Wash.

Four of the six men who competed at last season's regional championships return while three of the six women are back.

Hatch returns on the men's side after setting the 10K program record finishing 65th with a time of 30:40.0 while Dawson Leffler (162nd), Aiden Hardy (181st) and Collin Manning (188th) return.

On the women's side, the Trailblazers bring back Perriton (190th), Bird (202nd) & Charly Murie (233rd).

SECOND GO ROUND IN RIVERSIDE
Both the men and women finished off the regular season at the UCR Highlander Invitational on Oct. 18 in California with strong performances

The women took third as a team with four Trailblazers in the top 50 in the 6K led by Perriton's 10th-place performance as she clocked a time of 20:51.8 (third-fastest in program history).

Makayla Pitcher (16th), Bird (21st) and Hailee Phillips (45th) also posted strong finishes while on the men's side, the Trailblazers checked in eighth.

On the men's side, the Trailblazers took eighth as a team with Hatch leading the charge with the fourth-fastest 8K in program history checking in 17th with a time of 24:09.2.

Four more Trailblazers finished in the top 100 led by freshman Mordechai Yadegar coming in 32nd with a time of 24:24.3 (sixth-fastest in program history).

SOUTHERN UTAH COLOR COUNTRY INVITATIONAL
The Trailblazer women finished second and the men came in third at the Southern Utah Color Country Invitational at the Cedar Ridge Golf Cours on Oct. 4.

With the men getting action started with a 6K, Hatch led the Trailblazers with a 10th-place finish clocking a time of 19:34.32.

Four more Trailblazers registered top 30 finishes in Hardy (17th), Rex Martin (21st), Leffler (22nd) and Grayson Peterson (29th).

On the women's side, the Trailblazers notched a runner-up finish with six runners finishing in the top 20.

Led by a pair of top 10 finishes from Pitcher (5th) and Perriton (7th), the duo breezed to the fifth & sixth-fastest 4K times in program history.

FIRST TRIP TO UC RIVERSIDE IN SEPTEMBER
The Trailblazers made their first trip to California this season competing on 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 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.

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, Hatch was the top finisher placing 64th in a field of 223 with a time of 24:54.8 in the 8K.

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

SEASON OPENER 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.

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.

UP NEXT
The cross country season wraps up with the NCAA Championships hosted by the University of Missouri at Gans Creek Cross Country Course on Nov. 22 in Columbia, Mo.