SAN DIEGO — Skyline’s Thomas Boyden lined up for the 41st annual Foot Locker Cross Country Championships in San Diego Saturday feeling confident.
“I didn’t have my best race,” the Stanford commit said after finishing in 12th place with a time of 15:34.9. “I was hoping to get top 5. ... I was 13th last year. I am in better shape than my performance showed.”
Zofia Dudek of Ann Arbor, Michigan earned first place in the girls race, and Josh Methner of Mount Prospect, Illinois, won the boys championship with a time of 15:08.8.
Boyden’s race unraveled in the last mile, but all of the runners from Utah said the course was tougher than they expected, even for those who’d run it last year like Boyden.
“It was a really hard course today,” he said.
Dalton Mortensen, a junior from Bountiful High running in the national meet for the first time in his prep career, added, “The course was really hard, probably one of the most challenging courses I’ve ever run, even harder than the Utah state (meet) course.”
Boyden said he thought part of the challenge came from the regional meet they competed in last weekend to qualify for this prestigious race.
“Our regional race got rained out, so we ended up running on a flat road,” Boyden said. “Racing a super easy course made this seem even harder. And it’s just hard.”
Despite not having the finish he hoped for, Boyden still earned All-American honors as he finished in the top 15.
Mortensen hoped to finish in that top 15 but missed it by three seconds. He ran the course in 15:40.8, but the good news is that he’s just a junior and has another shot at earning All-American next season. He started running, just like several other Utah athletes, as a way to keep in shape for soccer.
Once he hit high school, he realized he had real talent in distance running, and that became his sport. He loves running for what it teaches him.
“It’s a good outlet for seeing hard work pay off in really gratifying ways,” he said.
Skyridge High’s Creed Thompson finished 18th with a time of 15:42.1, and his twin brother Davin Thompson, finished in 23rd place with a time of 15:49.8. They said taking up cross country was their mom’s idea because she thought it would help them be better soccer players.
“We quit soccer our freshman year,” Creed said, adding he loves running with his brother. “It keeps me in check, and it’s good competition to help me improve.”
Davin Thompson said the national stage was a bit intimidating.
“I was pretty nervous,” he said. “I haven’t really experienced running against this many top boys ever.”
Like his brother, he said the sport gives him the chance to push himself physically and mentally.
“It’s super satisfying to watch myself grow and improve,” he said.
Utah’s lone female runner was Lehi’s Anna Martin, who finished with a time of 18:12.6. That was good enough for 25th place, which was not what the BYU-bound senior hoped for, but she said it was still an incredible opportunity to learn and grow.
“I was shooting for the top 10 or 15, but that wasn’t how the race played out,” she said. “But last year I took 34th, so this is a good jump for me, so I’m excited.”
Race conditions at Morley Field in Balboa Park were ideal with soft terrain, partly cloudy skies and temperatures reaching 61 degrees. The race allows the top 40 boys and girls from the Foot Locker Regional races to compete for a national title.