Neither Daniel Simmons nor Andie Aagard ran in last year’s Utah state cross-country meet, but both left little doubt about who Utah’s best 6A runner was this season at the state meet Tuesday.
American Fork’s Simmons dominated the 6A boys race to win the individual title by 19 seconds while Lone Peak’s Aagard won her individual title by 21 seconds at the Salt Lake Regional Complex.
Both were instrumental in leading their teams to state titles as well, the first since 2018 for American Fork while Lone Peak won for the third time in the past four years.
Simmons competed in Idaho last year and was the state meet runner-up, whereas Aagard was too busy with her competitive mountain biking to participate in cross-country.
They may have been strangers to the venue on Tuesday, but not their competitors.
Simmons ran with the pack for about the first third of the race, but with the pace too slow for his liking he started to pull away and never looked back over those final two miles.
Aagard waited until the final mile to make her move and nobody could keep up. Pretty impressive considering she competed in the state mountain biking championships in St. George on Saturday in wild conditions in which she said winds were gusting up to 40 miles per hour.
“It was a crazy race,” said Aagard.
There was nothing crazy about her race on Tuesday as she won with a time of 17:26.6, with American Fork’s Avalon Mecham finishing second in 17:47.6.
“I knew I had the physical capability to beat Avalon, but I didn’t know how my legs would show up after Saturday,” said Aagard.
She had plenty of kick in those legs when she made her move, and she said mentally that cross-country isn’t nearly as taxing as mountain bike races.
“Running is a lot different than biking, I feel more confident for some reason in making moves running. I think it’s cause it’s a short race and I’m used to hourlong races,” said Aagard.
Lone Peak coach Courtney Meldrum said even though Aagard only competed in three races this season for the Knights as she juggled school and her mountain biking schedule, her presence was felt throughout the season.
“The difference is you raise the level, you raise the bar when you get an athlete like that. It just takes everyone with them, that’s how sports works,” said Meldrum.
Led by Aagard, Lone Peak rolled to the team title with 30 team points, followed by American Fork in second with 57 and Corner Canyon in third with 131.
Shelby Jensen finished third for Westlake with a time of 17:51.6, while Lone Peak’s Addie Meldrum — a fellow two-sport fall athlete as she plays soccer — finished fourth with 18:12.7. Lone Peak’s other two scoring runners finished seventh and eighth, freshman Anna Bybee and sophomore Boston Bybee.
Meldrum didn’t push for either Aagard or her daughter to run cross-country last season as her team was senior-loaded, but the timing worked out for all parties this year and it showed with a dominant title.
For American Fork’s boys, boasted by Simmons move to Utah it captured its first state title since 2018 as it tallied 76 team points, followed by Lone Peak in second with 99 and Riverton in third with 101.
After Simmons time of 14:49.8, Herriman’s Noah Jenkins finished second in 15:08.5, and Lone Peak’s Jaron Hartshorn in third with 15:14.0.
Simmons said his goal heading into Tuesday’s meet was to finish around 14:30, but was still pleased with his individual and team accomplishment.
“I wasn’t actually worried about placement, I really was really coming here for the time, I wanted to win and I was going to fight for the win,” said Simmons.
A slow pace in the first mile kind of prevented that 14:30 time, but over the second two miles he took matters into his own hands.
“I was hoping some guys would take it out fast and take the wind for me the first mile, but as soon as I started seeing people kind of slow down, I just sped up and took the lead from there,” he said.
Simmons said he had no problem running from the front, which he said is a spiritual experience.
“I love running at the front, it just speaks to me, I can feel the spirit so strong when I’m just free and not worried about anyone behind or in front of me. I just feel the power of god just coming straight into me. I just feel free. It feels awesome,” said Simmons.
Simmons added that there’s bigger goals ahead for American Fork at regionals and nationals, but collectively Tuesday’s race was a great start for the Cavemen as they look to reestablish their dominance in Utah.
Class 6A State Championships
At Regional Athletic Complex
Girls team scores
- Lone Peak, 30
- American Fork, 57
- Corner Canyon, 131
- Mountain Ridge, 173
- Westlake, 174
- Riverton, 200
- Weber, 214
- Herriman, 222
Girls individual results
- Andie Aagard, Lone Peak, 17:26.6
- Avalon Mecham, American Fork, 17:47.6
- Shelby Jensen, Westlake, 17:51.6
- Addie Meldrum, Lone Peak, 18:12.7
- Hailey Low, Layton, 18:14.4
- Sophie Steiger, American Fork, 18:22.0
- Anna Bybee, Lone Peak, 18:27.1
- Boston Bybee, Lone Peak, 18:28.1
- Natalia Boltz, American Fork, 18:31.1
- Brielle Nilsson, Lone Peak, 18:31.7
- Zoey Nilsson, Lone Peak, 18:31.9
- Cailey Bracken, Mountain Ridge, 18:33.5
- Kylie Olsen, Skyridge, 18:43.6
- Alyssa Kleinman, American Fork, 18:50.5
- Millie Robinson, Westlake, 18:52.5
- Paige Rhoads, Corner Canyon, 18:54.9
- Maggie Featherstone, Herriman, 18:57.6
- Emerald Kehr, West, 19:03.4
- Mya Oyler, Riverton, 19:04.5
- Anna Nelson, Corner Canyon, 19:04.9
- Elayna Loveridge, Mountain Ridge, 19:05.3
- Mya Curtis, Westlake, 19:05.7
- Charly Murie, Corner Canyon, 19:09.8
- Skye Siddoway, Farmington, 19:10.0
- Carli Nelson, Layton, 19:10.2
- Ryann Jones, Riverton, 19:21.9
- Tori Stratton, American Fork, 19:25.0
- Natalie Swain, Bingham, 19:25.6
- Alayna Wardle, Herriman, 19:27.6
- Gracie Rodarte, Weber, 19:31.2
- Ashley Favero, Lone Peak, 19:31.3
- Gretchen Higley, Clearfield, 19:34.7
- Sarah Dye, Weber, 19:38.5
- Jackie Andrewsen, Corner Canyon, 19:39.2
- Brielle Lee, American Fork, 19:42.1
- Lauren Horsley, Mountain Ridge, 19:43.7
- Ella Miller, Farmington, 19:45.3
- Breelyssa Leeper, Herriman, 19:46.3
- Lily Shawcroft, Cyprus, 19:48.8
- Whitley Kidd, Copper Hills, 19:54.4
- Audrey Wright, American Fork, 19:55.7
- Aubrey Wahlquist, Corner Canyon, 19:56.3
- Chloe Swain, Riverton, 19:56.5
- Courtney Madsen, Corner Canyon, 19:56.7
- Lucy Schofield, Riverton, 19:56.9
- Taylee Richards, Fremont, 19:58.1
- Kenedy Maudsley, Davis, 19:59.1
- Ava McMurtrey, Pleasant Grove, 20:03.3
- Clara Madsen, Skyridge, 20:03.5
- Merin Urban, Weber, 20:04.7
- Becca Ferre, Bingham, 20:05.6
- McCall Dalpais, Weber, 20:06.6
- Taylor Miller, Farmington, 20:08.0
- Whitney Bartlett, Mountain Ridge, 20:08.7
- Halle Mehr, Skyridge, 20:10.4
- Brooklyn Tarr, Mountain Ridge, 20:11.0
- Andenelle Marker, Weber, 20:11.3
- Keeley Miller, Davis, 20:11.7
- Alexis Bradshaw, Farmington, 20:11.9
- Ayla Kazmar, Farmington, 20:13.3
- Rachel Crosby, Herriman, 20:14.0
- Cadence Keyes, Weber, 20:15.6
- Elise Hartsell, Skyridge, 20:17.7
- Tai Aston, Farmington, 20:18.2
- Talia Anderson, Westlake, 20:20.0
- Laureli Edmunds, Corner Canyon, 20:21.5
- Grace Waite, Mountain Ridge, 20:21.8
- Katelyn Perry, Bingham, 20:24.1
- Savannah Davies, Copper Hills, 20:26.2
- Shelby Joy, Weber, 20:28.0
- Avery Benson, Bingham, 20:28.6
- Lily Neff, Syracuse, 20:29.2
- Chloe Cornia, Riverton, 20:30.9
- Marci Havens, Westlake, 20:38.0
- Emily Ormsby, Layton, 20:39.1
- Jadyn Parker, Westlake, 20:39.5
- Helena Gutierrez, West, 20:41.0
- Brooklyn Bement, Farmington, 20:43.4
- Michelle Elliss, Cyprus, 20:48.1
- Indianna Lundell, Fremont, 20:49.0
- Hannah Elliss, Cyprus, 20:53.0
- Libbie Cline, Riverton, 20:54.0
- Kennedy Hadley, Syracuse, 20:55.1
- Lindsey Gerhart, Herriman, 20:56.2
- Skylie Barker, Copper Hills, 20:56.7
- Katie Ormsby, Layton, 20:57.0
- Cici Smith, Clearfield, 21:00.0
- Andilusia Manwaring, Copper Hills, 21:03.7
- Eliza Sandberg, Skyridge, 21:09.6
- Cristie Bastidas, West Jordan, 21:10.5
- Laynee Rowley, Fremont, 21:11.1
- Macie Matson, Riverton, 21:11.2
- Lilly Brown, Fremont, 21:11.4
- Isabelle Rodriguez, Cyprus, 21:11.6
- Kensie Bowen, Herriman, 21:12.5
- Holly Taylor, Skyridge, 21:15.1
- Kaitlin Johnson, Copper Hills, 21:15.6
- Riley Taylor, Copper Hills, 21:17.1
- Kaylee Karlsven, Bingham, 21:21.3
- Brook Timothy, Layton, 21:24.0
- Ari James, Westlake, 21:25.3
- Reagan Vanderlinden, Taylorsville, 21:25.7
- Anna Hatt, Syracuse, 21:30.7
- Christine Bernards, Syracuse, 21:33.1
- Tessa Densley, Bingham, 21:34.0
- Kaylee Whyte, Clearfield, 21:34.3
- Abi Taylor, Fremont, 21:34.8
- Breckyln Bugnet, Fremont, 21:35.1
- Shelley Sorensen, Syracuse, 21:48.0
- Kennedy Hansen, Fremont, 21:51.5
- Jessica Wilson, Pleasant Grove, 21:52.6
- Allison Montgomery, Davis, 21:53.8
- Mia Kauffman, Skyridge, 21:56.8
- Eliza Rains, Bingham, 21:58.4
- Jasmine Pacheco, Cyprus, 22:00.0
- Eliza Swain, Davis, 22:01.0
- Samantha Iskow, Cyprus, 22:05.5
- Kenzie Chambers, Syracuse, 22:06.9
- Reagan Wright, Layton, 22:13.0
- Natalie Brown, West Jordan, 22:15.7
- Jastin Fulton, Roy, 22:18.2
- Emma Griffin, Syracuse, 22:22.1
- Elyse Gibson, Copper Hills, 22:22.2
- Danica Fox, Clearfield, 22:28.5
- Ruby Noorda, Roy, 22:32.7
- Natalya Callister, Hunter, 22:42.4
- Maci Woolf, Herriman, 22:43.7
- Lucy Huler, Layton, 22:44.9
- Stephania Hernandez, Pleasant Grove, 22:45.1
- Kaylynn Adams, Clearfield, 22:45.8
- Malina Bell, Davis, 22:50.1
- Brynn Poulson, Cyprus, 22:53.0
- Emily Parke, Clearfield, 22:58.6
- Linzie Sedgwick, Clearfield, 23:17.6
- Karely Medina, Hunter, 23:28.0
- Juliet Stanley, Davis, 23:30.9
- Brynlee Oyler, Davis, 23:43.0
Boys team scores
- American Fork, 76
- Lone Peak, 99
- Riverton, 101
- Herriman, 126
- Skyridge, 158
- Corner Canyon, 160
- Farmington, 164
- Westlake, 207
Boys individual results
- Daniel Simmons, American Fork, 14:49.8
- Noah Jenkins, Herriman, 15:08.5
- Jaron Hartshorn, Lone Peak, 15:14.0
- Spencer Bradshaw, Farmington, 15:20.0
- William Horne, Herriman, 15:28.9
- Andrew Harris, Weber, 15:29.6
- Connor Whatcott, Corner Canyon, 15:30.3
- Alex Maxfield, West Jordan, 15:31.1
- Jeff Lewis, Corner Canyon, 15:31.9
- Tyler McDougal, Riverton, 15:32.6
- Cooper Bybee, Lone Peak, 15:35.3
- Seth Smith, American Fork, 15:36.6
- Zach Hillhouse, Pleasant Grove, 15:37.5
- Jonah Denison, Skyridge, 15:39.0
- Grayson Milne, Corner Canyon, 15:39.3
- Brent Clark, Lone Peak, 15:39.9
- Jake Seegmiller, Riverton, 15:42.0
- Ben Bradshaw, American Fork, 15:44.3
- Samuel Ghiz, Riverton, 15:45.7
- Devan Greene, Skyridge, 15:47.4
- Ben Jaster, American Fork, 15:48.5
- Eli Gibby, Westlake, 15:51.8
- Landon Hart, Weber, 15:52.4
- Chase Pack, American Fork, 15:52.5
- Jayden Gibson, Skyridge, 15:54.6
- Simon Petersen, Fremont, 15:57.3
- Corbin Randall, Riverton, 15:58.5
- Andrew Ludwig, Riverton, 15:58.7
- Steven Keogh, Westlake, 15:58.9
- Aaron Miller, Farmington, 16:00.5
- Isaac Lundberg, Davis, 16:02.7
- Kohen Reed, Farmington, 16:03.0
- Mark Bybee, Lone Peak, 16:03.1
- Scott Klingonsmith, Westlake, 16:03.4
- Tayshaun Ogomo, Herriman, 16:07.2
- Braxton Bybee, Lone Peak, 16:10.8
- Preston Gledhill, Taylorsville, 16:12.4
- Dalin Holje, Layton, 16:13.0
- Kaden Evans, American Fork, 16:15.5
- Asher Bowen, Fremont, 16:16.6
- Ryland Garner, Herriman, 16:18.2
- Michael Ballard, Copper Hills, 16:19.8
- Jack Beckstrom, Herriman, 16:21.2
- Isaac Jensen, Skyridge, 16:23.4
- Tyler Muirbrook, Farmington, 16:27.0
- Ian Strauss, Lone Peak, 16:27.1
- Spencer Havey, Weber, 16:28.1
- Noah Tucker, Taylorsville, 16:28.2
- Caden Timm-DuShane, Copper Hills, 16:29.2
- Gage Helm, Riverton, 16:29.4
- Braden Smith, Copper Hills, 16:29.7
- Trevin Anderson, Westlake, 16:30.7
- Izaac Crosland, Farmington, 16:31.1
- Darren Randall, Corner Canyon, 16:32.8
- Taylor Kjar, Skyridge, 16:33.1
- Sam Sorensen, Bingham, 16:34.0
- Cole Jameson, Taylorsville, 16:34.1
- Franklin Monson, Weber, 16:35.2
- Luke Briggs, Herriman, 16:36.7
- Landon Sturgeon, Farmington, 16:38.5
- Chris Hercules, Cyprus, 16:39.6
- Luke Horner, Riverton, 16:40.4
- Elias Nalder, Layton, 16:40.5
- Bryce Glutz, Lone Peak, 16:41.1
- Kai Makowski, Taylorsville, 16:41.3
- William Steadman, Herriman, 16:44.5
- Jeff Qualls, Syracuse, 16:45.2
- Jonny Reed, Davis, 16:48.2
- Bridger Kelley, Bingham, 16:49.5
- Trevor Wyatt, Skyridge, 16:50.5
- Easton Higley, Clearfield, 16:51.3
- Ezra Nelson, Skyridge, 16:52.4
- Jacob Hudson, Westlake, 16:54.0
- Brandon Geckler, Davis, 16:57.5
- Jonah Andrews, Taylorsville, 16:57.8
- Davis Rydman, Layton, 16:58.0
- Bodie Williamson, Farmington, 16:59.0
- Jackson Spencer, Syracuse, 16:59.2
- Erick Yuan, Corner Canyon, 16:59.8
- Graham Judkins, Fremont, 17:00.0
- Dylan Sharp, Westlake, 17:02.4
- Carson Rasmussen, Copper Hills, 17:02.5
- Kaden Salle, Westlake, 17:03.4
- Ryan Etherington, Corner Canyon, 17:04.1
- Ryan Mautz, Copper Hills, 17:04.6
- Tyson Bullock, Bingham, 17:05.0
- Isaac Allen, Bingham, 17:05.2
- Isaiah Gilbert, Bingham, 17:05.5
- Caleb Taggart, Davis, 17:08.6
- Heber Davis, Davis, 17:13.9
- Conner Smedley, Fremont, 17:15.6
- Garrett Callahan, Mountain Ridge, 17:16.8
- Andrew Poulson, Cyprus, 17:18.1
- Jeff Cook, Davis, 17:18.7
- Cade Rawling, Davis, 17:19.1
- Tanner Orton, Bingham, 17:19.2
- Edward Stout, Taylorsville, 17:20.2
- Mason Aardema, Weber, 17:21.6
- Caleb McDonald, Bingham, 17:22.0
- Steven Carver, Pleasant Grove, 17:22.9
- Tyler Keys, Fremont, 17:23.8
- Broc Carrigan, Fremont, 17:24.1
- Brandon Smith, Corner Canyon, 17:25.6
- Hunter Pedersen, Mountain Ridge, 17:28.3
- Matthew Curtis, West Jordan, 17:28.5
- Kolten Hafen, Mountain Ridge, 17:29.0
- Joey Burton, Layton, 17:29.5
- Nathan Morrison, West Jordan, 17:30.1
- Mariano Garnica Ocampo, West Jordan, 17:33.4
- Joseph Ungerman, Mountain Ridge, 17:33.6
- Bridger Karren, American Fork, 17:33.7
- Jaydale Hansen, Taylorsville, 17:37.4
- Collin Green, Mountain Ridge, 17:39.3
- Corbin Riser, Copper Hills, 17:43.5
- Cody Casperson, Fremont, 17:43.7
- Ryker Moss, Syracuse, 17:45.6
- Jackson Simmons, Weber, 17:46.5
- Tanner Lokham, Clearfield, 17:48.8
- Tyndale Curtis, West Jordan, 17:50.0
- Jonathon Thornley, Layton, 17:50.4
- Bennett Harkness, Weber, 17:51.3
- Thomas Gudgell, West Jordan, 17:53.7
- Nathan Boren, Pleasant Grove, 17:53.8
- Hunter Robinson, Mountain Ridge, 17:54.1
- Larkin Hancuff, Kearns, 17:56.5
- Treyson Swensen, Layton, 17:57.7
- Ian Reitzel, West Jordan, 18:02.4
- Cameron Koch, Layton, 18:03.2
- Elijah Tolton, Syracuse, 18:04.4
- Ashton Pedersen, Mountain Ridge, 18:08.8
- Carson Gurr, Pleasant Grove, 18:09.6
- Keoni Gumataotao, Clearfield, 18:11.7
- Keaton Scholes, Copper Hills, 18:27.7
- Hunter Huwe, Pleasant Grove, 18:39.9
- Regan Gibby, Roy, 18:41.2
- Hunter Draney, Pleasant Grove, 18:59.6
- Andrew Peterson, West, 19:04.6
- Samuel Mcavoy, Pleasant Grove, 19:30.3