Mountain View powers through to win 5A boys track title
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- The Mountain View boys track team celebrates winning the 5A title after the 2023 state track meet at the Robison Track Complex in Provo on Saturday, May 20, 2023.
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- Mountain View senior Kellis Taylor wins the 400-meter race in the 5A boys competition during the 2023 state track meet at the Robison Track Complex in Provo on Saturday, May 20, 2023.
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- Skyridge senior Smith Snowden wins the 100-meter race in the 6A boys competition during the 2023 state track meet at the Robison Track Complex in Provo on Saturday, May 20, 2023.
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- Runners compete in the 110-meter hurdles race in the 6A boys competition during the 2023 state track meet at the Robison Track Complex in Provo on Saturday, May 20, 2023.
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- An American Fork athlete competes in the pole vault in the 6A boys competition during the 2023 state track meet at the Robison Track Complex in Provo on Saturday, May 20, 2023.
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- Skyridge senior Smith Snowden stands atop the podium after winning the 100-meter race in the 6A boys competition during the 2023 state track meet at the Robison Track Complex in Provo on Saturday, May 20, 2023.
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- Runners start the 400-meter race in the 5A boys competition during the 2023 state track meet at the Robison Track Complex in Provo on Saturday, May 20, 2023.
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- Orem senior Tayson Echohawk celebrates winning the 800-meter race in the 5A boys competition during the 2023 state track meet at the Robison Track Complex in Provo on Saturday, May 20, 2023.
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- A Skyridge athlete competes in the pole vault in the 6A boys competition during the 2023 state track meet at the Robison Track Complex in Provo on Saturday, May 20, 2023.
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- Orem senior Cole Johnson throws the shot put in the 5A boys competition during the 2023 state track meet at the Robison Track Complex in Provo on Saturday, May 20, 2023.
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- Lehi junior Jensen Somerville throws the shot put in the 5A boys competition during the 2023 state track meet at the Robison Track Complex in Provo on Saturday, May 20, 2023.
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- Skyridge senior Smith Snowden wins the 200-meter race in the 6A boys competition during the 2023 state track meet at the Robison Track Complex in Provo on Saturday, May 20, 2023.
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- A Skyridge athlete competes in the high jump in the 6A boys competition during the 2023 state track meet at the Robison Track Complex in Provo on Saturday, May 20, 2023.
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- American Fork runners Kaden Evans and Seth Smith compete in the 1,600-meter race in the 6A boys competition during the 2023 state track meet at the Robison Track Complex in Provo on Saturday, May 20, 2023.
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- American Fork senior Erik Youngberg (right) and Lone Peak senior Caleb Doman compete in the 110-meter hurdles race in the 6A boys competition during the 2023 state track meet at the Robison Track Complex in Provo on Saturday, May 20, 2023.
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- Mountain View senior Mack Waite sports a pair of bright sunglasses as he competes in the 5A boys competition at the 2023 state track meet at the Robison Track Complex in Provo on Saturday, May 20, 2023.
Pressure to perform can be a wildcard at the state track meet.
Frequently teams get to the Robison Track Complex in Provo with big expectations but sometimes it proves to be too much to handle.
That was the situation the Mountain View boys track team was in this weekend. The Bruins had the depth and talent to win the 5A title — but could they handle the weight of being favored?
“It’s nerve-wracking, because we had to come and do it,” Bruin senior Mack Waite said. “We were expected to, but we’ve got to go through that pain.”
Mountain View proved to be up to the challenge, coming up with key performances to pull away from second-place Box Elder and the rest of the field to leave no doubt which team was the best in 2023.
“It’s been so awesome,” Waite said. “We are brothers and we came together. This is the best feeling I’ve ever felt.”
Bruin head coach Mike Strauss said it is incredibly rewarding to see a group of athletes achieve their goals like his team did this year.
“It was phenomenal this week,” Strauss said. “We got points in some events where were weren’t planning on scoring and it just snowballed. Everyone started feeding off that energy and momentum. Either you crumble under that pressure or you get on and ride that train. They were all just like let’s go get a state championship.”
One of the big highlights was seeing the Mountain View 4×800 relay team break the 5A record on Thursday.
“We were trying to destroy the record,” said Waite, who was on the relay team. “It was 7:55 and we wanted to just break 7:50. I was like, that’s fast. I don’t know if we are going to do it. Then we went out and ran 7:44. I couldn’t have asked for a better time.”
The Bruins also got first and second place in the 400-meter race as senior Kellis Taylor held off senior teammate Collin Petersen to take the top two spots.
“Performance changes everything,” Strauss said. “To see them step out on this stage and perform, that is so much fun.”
This was a Mountain View team that had a lot of seniors and even as he watched them cap the state title run, Strauss was already thinking about how much he’ll miss them.
“I have separation anxiety,” he said with a grin. “You spend all those years and all that time and they’re like, hey, we’re finally seniors. And I’m like, stop. I want you guys to be here forever. But there’s a lot to be said about the maturity and being able to approach it with at least a little bit more experience.”
Waite said being champs is something he’ll always remember.
“We’re all really close,” Waite said. “Just holding up that trophy as a team is the best. We all worked so hard for it. I’m just so happy that this group got to go and hoist that trophy up together.”
While none of the 6A boys teams were able to keep up with Corner Canyon and Herriman (American Fork edged Lone Peak by a single point to get third), there were still a number of great individual performances.
Few experienced the drama like Skyridge senior Smith Snowden did, however.
He had to contend with West Jordan senior Gabe Remy in a pair of classic sprint duals that were so close, they had to examine the photo finish closely.
“I thought I caught him when I hit the line,” Snowden said. “The same thing happened to me last year. These races are the closest races you will be a part of in your track career. They are just fun to be a part of.”
Snowden said he wasn’t thrilled with his start in the 100 but felt like he had the capability to overcome it.
“I didn’t have my greatest start so I had to make up a lot of time through that like last 20 meters,” Snowden said. “I saw him a little bit in front of me and I was like, I’ve got to show them what type of guts I have.”
Snowden ended up defeating Remy by just over a tenth of a second (10.581 to 10.595) in the 100, then turned around and beat his Jaguar rival by an even smaller margin (21.392 to 21.394) in the 200.
“It was my goal this whole season to take state because I came so close last year,” Snowden said. “Having that feels so good.”
Orem’s Tayson Echohawk also had a big day with wins in the 1,600 and 800-meter races, which along with his 3,200-meter win on Thursday gave him three individual titles for the week.
American Fork’s Daniel Simmons also duplicated his long-distance success, adding the 6A boys 1,600-meter title to the 3,200 victory he had Thursday.
The other 5A boys teams that won state titles on Saturday were the Mountain View 4×100 relay team and the Timpview 4×400 relay squad.
For complete details from the state finals, go to http://runnercard.com.
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