Boys track places 2nd at Copper Hills Invitational
Apr 16, 2024 12:31PM ● By Liisa London Mecham
Kenny Whitmer goes over the bar in the high jump. Whitmer jumped 5-10.0 at Copper Hills to place 5th.
Union Meet
When Morgan traveled to Roosevelt, Wednesday, March 27, to compete against Union, South Summit, and Duchesne in a Region 13 meet, they took three buses that were filled with 137 athletes. Although this may seem like a lot of student-athletes, the total number of students on the boys and girls track teams is higher – 179. A quick calculation shows that 16% of the student population at Morgan High are members of the track team or almost two out of every 10 students at the school participate in track. When the Morgan High track teams arrive, other teams take notice, not just because of the size, but also due to the level of talent. At the Union meet, Morgan’s boys and girls captured first place with 114.5 and 92 points, respectively. Union placed second (55, 62) with Duchesne (46, 34) and South Summit (16, 26) taking third and fourth. At the meet, Morgan had 27 boys and 21 girls compete in the 100m race.
Although the meet was cold and long (the last throw was at 8 p.m. with the buses returning to Morgan at midnight), a number of Morgan athletes excelled.
In boys events, Morgan took the first four places in the 200m race with Tucker Giles leading the pack (24.04). Giles also won the 110m hurdles in his first time racing this event (15.69). Kenny Whitmer took the 400m (52.44), and Esplan McClellan outpaced everyone in the 800m (2:10.78). In the 3200m, Brooks Anderton was the champion (11:44.25).
In the girls events, Caitlyn Flitton raced to first in the 200m (28.67), Lauren Kobe won the 400m (1:08.27), Alexis Cox took the 800m, and the Hogge sisters, Ashlee and Addison, crossed the finish line 1-2 in the 1600m race. Tyli Archibald won the shot put (30-1.5) with Abby Titus taking first in the high jump (4-11.0), and Kendall Peterson winning the long jump (15.50)
Copper Hills Invitational
Saturday, March 30, the Trojans competed at the Copper Hills Invitational in West Jordan against 22 other teams from Utah and Wyoming. The boys team placed second (81 points) to first-place West Jordan (107.5). In the girls team race, Morgan took 12th out of 23 teams with 28.5 points to Copper Hill’s first-place total of 66.
“The weather at Copper Hills was not what we were hoping for.” Coach Brennen Fuller said. “It was wet, cold, and windy, but we constantly reminded our kids that no matter the weather or situation, it is the same for every athlete on every team, and to not make excuses, but to go out there and expect great things.”
“Don’t base how you perform on others,” he continued, “but on YOU and what YOU want to accomplish that day. And we did! We earned 26 medals, and the boys team finished 2nd overall, earning a trophy in a meet with 22 teams that were mostly 5A and 6A!”
Fuller said the team/family is starting to understand their theme of “All In.” “No matter what the circumstances, they are leaving everything they have out there!”
In the relays, Morgan boys took first in the 4x400 (3:24.62). Their margin of victory over the second palace team was five seconds! (see related article “Morgan Track Athletes Hold Top Times in State”). The boys team earned second place in the 4x100 relay (44.74), and the girls placed third in the 4x100 (52.18).
In the high jump, Abby Titus tied for first with a 5-3.0 mark while Karli Lyman placed sixth (4-10.0). Kenny Whitmer earned fifth place in the high jump (5-10.0).
Tucker Giles won the 400m with a time of 50.84, and Kendall Peterson garnered fifth place (1:04.86) in the girls 400m. Giles also took third in the 110m hurdles (16.28), running them for only the second time in competition after his first-place finish at Union.
In the 100m, Brogan Garrett placed fourth (11.64), and Jacob Carter took 6th (11.68).
In the 800m, Brooks Anderton finished eighth (2:05.82) while Ashlee Hogge took eighth in the 1600m race (5:52.37).
Gavin DeWitt scored 16 team points with a second-place finish in the javelin (160-9.0) and placements in both hurdles. In the 110m hurdles, he took fourth (17.05), and in the 300m, he took sixth (42.66). Maverick Guymon placed fifth in both the 110m and 300m hurdles (17.28, 42.19).
In the field, Londyn Elmer earned sixth place in the discus with a throw of 96-5.0 while Brogan Garrett took fourth in the boys event (123-5.0). In the long jump, Christian Nunez leaped 20-2.5 to secure fourth place, and Titus took sixth in the girls long jump (15-7.25). λ
