Facing some of the best teams in the country, the Utah cross country team ranked No. 26 at the NCAA Pre-Nationals out of the 39 teams that competed in the 6-kilometer White Team Race.
“We are focusing on our conference meet that is in a couple of weeks now,” head coach Kyle Kepler said. “We are going to stay sharp and get sharp in other areas.”
Crossing the line first for the team was Alyssa Abbott. Overall, Abbott ranked No. 41 with a time of 21 minutes 14 seconds. Chelsea DiGrazia finished 17 seconds later as No. 60 out of 287 competitors. DiGrazia’s finishing time of 21:31 is a new personal best for the Utah runner.
Other notable finishers for the Utes were Janett Ern and Lauren Endersen. Ern finished with a personal best time of 22 minutes 17 seconds to finish 144 overall while Endersen came in 174 to finish with a time of 22 minutes 37 seconds.
“We need to stay confident,” Kepler said. “But our kids in the back need to come through if we’re going to overtake some of our opponents in the conference championships.”
The Utes will take their next step in the cross country season with the Mountain West Conference Championship in two weeks.
James Boehly