Volleyball and Cross Country head to state with high hopes
Nov 10, 2023 09:34AM ● By Liisa London Mecham
Volleyball earns No. 2 seed, heads to UVU to defend title
Morgan earned a No. 2 seed in the final RPI of the season. Emery received the top seed, and the Trojans will be out to prove the analytics of the RPI system wrong as they play to repeat as state champions and bring home Morgan’s 21st volleyball title and 18th under Coach Liz Wiscombe.
Morgan received a bye in the first round of the playoffs and opened the tournament at Utah Valley University in Orem against Judge Memorial, the No. 15 seed. Judge advanced to the second round of the playoffs by beating No. 18 seed, Layton Christian, 3-0, Saturday, Oct. 21.
Morgan played at 10:30 am and faced the winner of the Richfield (10)/Ogden (7) game, if they won, at 1:30 pm. The semifinal match will be Thursday, Oct. 26 at 11 a.m. and the championship game is at 4:30 p.m. Thursday afternoon.
Cross Country participates in State Meet Oct. 24
The 3A State Cross Country was held Tuesday, Oct. 24 at the Regional Athletic Complex in Rose Park. Morgan’s boys and girls competed against tough 3A competition. Results will be available next week.
In the race for the boys’ individual title, it will be close between the top two returning racers from last year, Morgan’s EJ Lee and Emery’s Camdon Larsen. At Divisionals, Lee won the Division B race in 17:14.2, but Larsen posted a 16:45.6 in the Division A final. Two Summit Academy runners clocked in at 17:02.7 and 17:07.5, ahead of Lee, but Lee ran a PR of 16:08.0, faster than any of the other 3A runners, at the Bob Firman Invitational last month. On the same Rose Park course at state last year, Lee took fifth and bested Larsen (6th) by five seconds, 16:23 to 16:28. Summit Academy’s runner placed 11th.
The race for the boys’ team title will also be tight. Morgan’s team placed third in their division behind Canyon View and Ogden with Manti, Emery, and Grantsville placing in the top three in the A Division.
Coach Brennen Fuller has stated that “any of the top teams can win the championship. We’ll just go out and give it our all for each other.”
Morgan’s girls are very young and working to garner a position among the Top 10 teams. Alexis Cox, a freshman, has run first all year from the Trojans and will be shooting for a PR on the State course along with her teammates. λ
