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Bonneville sophomore Avery Barton places first in the girls 3-mile race at the City-County Cross Country Championships Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024, in Harrisville.

CONNER BECKER, Standard-Examiner

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Weber senior Garrison Johnson places first in the boys 3-mile race at the City-County Cross Country Championships Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024, in Harrisville.

CONNER BECKER, Standard-Examiner

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HARRISVILLE — Bonneville sophomore Avery Barton and Weber High senior Garrison Johnson made the most of a smoky City-County cross country championships, claiming a pair of individual titles Wednesday at the Weber County Fairgrounds.

First to cross the finish line in the varsity events, Barton brought home a first-place individual finish (18:34.33) for the Lakers in the girls 3-mile race, beating out West Field runner-up Hailey Atwater (18:42.88) and teammate Nicole Wayment (19:10.04) in third place.

Barton, who first ran the course at the fairgrounds a year ago as a freshman, considers Wednesday’s championship victory the “hardest race I’ve ever done.”

“Coming down the stretch, it was the worst thing,” Barton recalled. “It felt like there was a side ache in all my legs … I think that I had more motivation in this race. Last year was really hard because of the wind and it was just honestly like being pushed.”

Weber claimed first as a team slotting three girls — Kate Lang (fourth, 19:43.89), Grace Rodarte (fifth, 20:09.50) and Andenelle Marker (10th, 21:00.55) — in the top 10. Weber runners Shelby Joy (21:09.87) and Kiera Cooley (21:28.53) placed 12th and 14th, respectively.

In the boys 3-mile race, Johnson led the charge with his first-place individual finish (15:46.36) outpacing Ogden High runner-up Bradley Ekstrom (15:55.84) and teammate Erik Bryant (15:57.56) down the final stretch.

“My buddy Erik took the lead with the last mile to go and it surprised me, but I’m grateful that he did because I was able to kind of stick with him,” Johnson said.

“Bradley (Ekstrom), he passed me too, so I was feeling kind of unmotivated that last mile,” he continued. “Then one of my buddies that graduated, his dad — he yelled to me that I’ve got a stronger kick than all these guys. I turned it on and it worked out in my favor.”

Fremont claimed the boys team victory, crossing three Silverwolves — Graham Judkins (fourth, 16:14.34), Beau Jenkins (fifth, 16:20.84) and Zack Steoger (seventh, 16:31.62) inside the top 10. Weber placed second as a team with Wyatt Rich (ninth, 17:00.34) joining Johnson and Bryant inside the top 10.

GIRLS INDIVIDUAL TOP 10

1. Avery Barton, Bonneville (18:34.33)

2. Hailey Atwater, West Field (18:42.88)

3. Nicole Wayment, Bonneville (19:10.04)

4. Kate Lang, Weber (19:43.89)

5. Grace Rodarte, Weber (20:09.50)

6. Indiana Lundell, Fremont (20:14.51)

7. Taylee Richards, Fremont (20:20.11)

8. Lundi Ferrier, Ben Lomond (20:26.08)

9. Berlin Bartlett, Ogden (20:34.17)

10. Andenelle Marker, Weber (20:41.46)

GIRLS TEAM FINISHES

1. Weber

2. Fremont

3. West Field

4. Morgan

5. Ogden

BOYS INDIVIDUAL TOP 10

1. Garrison Johnson, Weber (15:46.36)

2. Bradley Ekstrom, Ogden (15:55.84)

3. Erik Bryant, Weber (15:57.56)

4. Graham Judkins, Fremont (16:14.34)

5. Beau Jenkins, Fremont (16:20.84)

6. Spencer McKell, Bonneville (16:26.96)

7. Zack Steoger, Fremont (16:31.62)

8. Jonas Archibald, Morgan (16:59.20)

9. Wyatt Rich, Weber (17:00.34)

10. Thomas Goellner, Ben Lomond (17:01.21)

BOYS TEAM FINISHES

1. Fremont

2. Weber

3. Morgan

4. Ogden

5. West Field

6. Ben Lomond

7. Roy

8. Bonneville

Full results from Wednesday’s races can be found at MeetTrax.

Connect with prep sports reporter Conner Becker via email at cbecker@standard.net and X @ctbecker.

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