It's rare for five high school boys in a state to run 1:51 or faster at the end of March, but Utah is also an exceptional place when it comes to distance running. Utah is undoubtedly the fastest state for the 800m this year, and it doesn't look like they're slowing down.
Trevin Lounsbury and Peter Mecham set the tone at the Pine View Invitational with a dramatic finish separated by just three-hundredths of a second. Both achieved personal bests to start their outdoor seasons, but Lounsbury's performance was especially notable since he ran a season's best of 2:02 last season. Lounsbury has improved significantly since then, with a 1:54 this indoor season and now a 1:51. Brock Doman, Ayden Lee, and Brennon Tippits completed the epic duel with times that rank among Utah's current top 10 fastest.
Last weekend, the performances at the UVU Utah County HS Invitational and the Taylorsville Invitational elevated Utah's athletic standing. First, Jackson Spencer dominated the 800m at the Taylorsville Invite, winning by 5 seconds with a time of 1:51.24. This clocking ranks Spencer as the ninth-fastest in the U.S. this year.
Then, at the UVU Utah County HS Invitational, we witnessed one of the fastest high school 800m races on Utah soil between Austin Plewe and Joshua Beck. In their first race against each other this season, Plewe narrowly beat Beck by 0.15 seconds. Last weekend was similar, with Plewe setting a personal best of 1:49.74 and Beck clocking 1:50.57. Kyle Chipman and Tyler Wilson rounded out the top four finishers and also made it into the state's current top 10.
Those unexplainable moments from Plewe and Beck position them as U.S. No. 1 and U.S. No. 2 in the 800m, while also making their mark in Utah history. Plewe ran the third-fastest 800m time by a high schooler on Utah soil, and Beck is ranked 9th on the same list.
The most impressive part is that the top 5 boys in Utah are also ranked among the top 13 in the entire U.S. This is only the beginning for these Utahans, which could make 2026 the year of the 800m.
Utah Boys' 800m Rankings - April 2nd
Austin Plewe, (American Fork / 12th grade) - 1:49.74 (March 28)
Joshua Beck, (Pleasant Grove / 12th grade) - 1:50.57 (March 28)
Jackson Spencer, (Herriman / 12th grade) - 1:51.24 (March 28)
Trevin Lounsbury, (Herriman / 11th grade) - 1:51.56 (March 21)
Peter Mecham, (Orem / 12th grade) - 1:51.59 (March 21)
Brock Doman, (Corner Canyon / 11th grade) - 1:53.44 (March 21)
Ayden Lee, (Viewmont / 12th grade) - 1:54.02 (March 21)
Kyle Chipman, (Mountain View / 11th grade) - 1:55.52 (March 28)
Tyler Wilson, (Lone Peak / 12th grade) - 1:55.74 (March 28)
Brennon Tippits, (Maple Mountain / 12th grade) - 1:56.03 (March 21)
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It's rare for five high school boys in a state to run 1:51 or faster at the end of March, but Utah is also an exceptional place when it comes to distance running. Utah is undoubtedly the fastest state for the 800m this year, and it doesn't look like they're slowing down.
Trevin Lounsbury and Peter Mecham set the tone at the Pine View Invitational with a dramatic finish separated by just three-hundredths of a second. Both achieved personal bests to start their outdoor seasons, but Lounsbury's performance was especially notable since he ran a season's best of 2:02 last season. Lounsbury has improved significantly since then, with a 1:54 this indoor season and now a 1:51. Brock Doman, Ayden Lee, and Brennon Tippits completed the epic duel with times that rank among Utah's current top 10 fastest.
Last weekend, the performances at the UVU Utah County HS Invitational and the Taylorsville Invitational elevated Utah's athletic standing. First, Jackson Spencer dominated the 800m at the Taylorsville Invite, winning by 5 seconds with a time of 1:51.24. This clocking ranks Spencer as the ninth-fastest in the U.S. this year.