Utah XC Weekend Recap: Season Now in Full Swing

UIAAA Invitational (Spanish Fork, UT)

In central Utah, the UIAAA Invitational was an epic battle between multiple ranked teams and individuals in the State.  One of the most fierce competitions came from the varsity boys race, where Orem's Tayson Echohawk and Mountain View's Liam Heninger went wire to wire.  Heninger pulled off the upset and was able to outkick the number one runner in the State on the straight away and came away with a new state-leading time of 14:48 while Tayson trailed just one second behind in 14:49.  The team race was also something to be excited about as Mountain View came away with the team win in 85 points with a team average of 15:41.  Orem was second and upset a few other notable groups such as Corner Canyon, Herriman, and Lone Peak who were all in attendance as well.

In the girl's race, the biggest headline was Timpview's Jane Hedengren, who dropped the second fastest time in the nation for three miles with her 17:10 performance.  Jane ran a tactical race and played to her strengths as she really poured it in that last mile and finished 26 seconds ahead of her nearest competitor Avalon Mecham of American Fork.  Mecham and Mountain View's Mari Konold and Julie Moore were the only other runners to break 18 in the three-mile.  American Fork came away with the team win, finishing with a final score of 108 points and a team average of 18:44.  Mountain View took the next spot with 126 points, and Lone Peak rounded out the top three with 130 points.