#6 Utah Cross Country Back in Action at Color Country Invitational

Saturday, October 12

Cedar City, Utah

All Day

University of Utah

Color Country Invitational

Cross Country Color Country Invite Graphic

#6 Utah Cross Country Back in Action at Color Country Invitational

10/10/2019 2:37 PM | Cross Country

Color Country Meet Information

The Utes travel down to Cedar City, Utah.

#6 Utah Women's Cross Country Back in Action at Color Country Invitational

Date: Saturday, October 12, 2019
Location: Cedar Ridge Golf Course | Cedar City, Utah
Host: Southern Utah University
Time: 11:00 a.m. (MDT)
Utah Media Guide: 2019 Cross Country Media Guide (PDF)
Cross Country Statistics: 2019 Season Statistics (PDF

Starting Line
Coming off a huge team victory and upsetting the #1 in the nation at the Joe Piane Invitational last weekend, the Utah cross country team will travel to Cedar City, Utah to compete at the Color Country Invitational. Hosted by Southern Utah University, the meet will take place on Saturday, Oct. 12, at the Cedar Ridge Golf Course and is slated to begin at 11:00 a.m. (MDT) with the women's 4K race.

Utah Runners
Karli Branch
Anna Busatto
Nicole Griffiths
Sara Leonard
Ashley Licata
Kaitlyn Mercer
Jade Mulvey
Abby Rasmussen

Teams Competing
Dixie State University
Utah Valley University
Idaho State University
Southern Utah University (Host)

In the Rankings
After a stellar performance at the Joe Piane Invitational last weekend, the Utes have earned the highest ranking in program history coming in at No. 6 in the nation according to the latest USTFCCCA National Coaches' poll. In the Mountain Region, the Utes have climbed into second right behind BYU, who has been on top of the region throughout the season. The second-place rank in the Mountain Region is also a program record. The highly talented Mountain Region contains three teams that rank in the top-five of the nation, being No. 2 BYU, No. 3 Colorado, and No. 4 New Mexico.

Fresh Legs
Anna Busatto, Nicole Griffiths, Ashley Licata, Kaitlyn Mercer, and Abby Rasmussen will all be fresh and ready to compete. Karli Branch, Sara Leonard, and Jade Mulvey all raced in the Joe Piane women's open race last week.

Freshman Abby Rasmussen, who hails from Salt Lake City, will be making her collegiate debut Saturday for the Utes at the Color Country Invite. As a senior at Olympus High School, Rasmussen was a top-25 finisher in both UHSAA 5A and NXR Southwest Regional Cross Country and as a junior, registered a 5K PR time of 18:48.00.

Last Time Out
The Utes competed in their first race in nearly a month at the Joe Piane Invitational, where they had a historic day completing one of the best races in program history. In a battle against the #1 team in the nation, Colorado, the race came down to the wire as the Utes were able to come out victorious topping Colorado by a slim six points (110-116). Against a stacked field, Utah beat out 11 teams ranked inside the top-30 of the USTFCCCA National Coaches' poll, which included five teams inside the top-10.

The Utes finished all seven of their entries inside the top-40 with all earning new personal records. Bella Williams led the Utes finishing in 11th, followed by Poppy Tank in 12th, Sarah Feeny in 19th, Cara Woolnough in 27th and rounding out the five scorers for Utah was Scarlet Dale in 37th. Also competing for Utah was Trina Moreno (90th), Emma Christensen (106th) and Sarah Newton (149th).

Utah's more developing runners competed in the Open 5k where they placed all seven runners in the top-60 in a field that included 130 runners. Kennedy Powell led the charge finishing in 18th with Ellie Lundgreen on her heels finishing in 19th.

In the Classroom
The Utah cross country program strives for excellence in both athletics and academics and continues to get it done in the classroom. In the fall of 2018, the cross country team was one of seven teams at Utah that finished with cumulative GPA above a 3.5.

Last season, the Utes had nine student-athletes named to the Pac-12 All-Academic team with four of them being named to the first and second team and five being named honorable mention. Sophomore Cara Woolnough earned first team honors while senior Anna Busatto and juniors Astrid Lindgren and Natalie Platil were tabbed second team members. Aubrey Argyle, Emma Christensen, Sarah Feeny, Sarah Newton and former athlete Sadie Wassum were named honorable mention.

This marks the second Pac-12 All-Academic honor Feeny has received (2015) and the first time Woolnough, Busatto, Lindgren, Platil, Argyle, Christensen and Newton were awarded cross country all-academic in their careers.

Up Next
The Utah women's cross country team will compete at the Nuttycombe Invitational next Friday, Oct. 18. Hosted by Wisconsin, the race will be held at the Zimmer Championship Course in Madison, Wis.

Podcast
Click below to listen to head coach Kyle Kepler in his weekly cross country podcast. In this edition, coach Kepler talks about the Joe Piane Invitational and gives a preview of the Color Country Invitational.

Fans can follow the Utah cross country program on Twitter (@Utah_trackfield), Facebook (UtahTrackXC) and on Instagram (@UtahTrackXC).