Corner Canyon High’s David Konan set goals to dominate every meet this season in the sprint events and he backed up that mindset at the 6A state track championships at Brigham Young University May 16-17. The senior won the 100 meters and the 200 meters while also running a leg on the championship 4x100 relay and 4x200 relay teams in helping the boys team take second. The girls squad was sixth.

“David was a standout, winning gold in all four of his events,” said head coach Alyssa Dalton. “He was the only Charger to do so.”

“My mentality was to not be a part of the crowd, but to show out and be the top dog in the state,” Konan said. “It felt amazing to do that.”

Also on the 4x100 relay lineup was Bryton Brady, Isaiah Morris and Scott Pepper with Blake Ames, Pepper and Jerome Myles part of the winning 4x200 relay team.

“While it wasn’t a repeat title year, Corner Canyon athletes fought hard, shattered school records, and proved they belong among Utah’s elite,” Dalton said. 

Two girls relays also won state championships – the 4x100 relay squad of Layla Valadez, Alice Peterson, Sophia Millich and Liberty Henstrom and the 4x200 relay lineup of Henstrom, Peterson, Valadez, Kenna Wong, Millich, Tayvee Ash, Sayler Grigoratos and Hallie Neff.

Konan, the son of Amos Konan and Dorris Jarlee, both of Taylorsville, has overcome hamstring and foot issues and also losing his club coach to Covid to peak for his state performance to be able to begin his senior year with a state football championship and end high school with four more state titles.

“The way I grew up [with immigrant parents from Liberia] I’ve always had the hunger mentality which has kept me motivated when I’m tired, sore and really in pain,” said Konan, who will take his running talents to Utah State. “I can’t describe the feeling. I would just constantly tell myself that I’ve gotta do this for me, my family, my teammates, my school. Track has help me be mentally disciplined and do hard things.”

Fourteen others competing for the Region 2 champion boys team who “demonstrated incredible strength and teamwork,” according to Dalton, were Myles, McKay Wells, Brock White, Blake Ames, Chryshaun Lee, Aidan Springer, Tina’u Fiaui, Steven Carlsen, Phin Mayer, Brock Doman, Thomas Cooper, Cooper Moore, Ryan Etherington and Brody Meier.

Myles “made an inspiring comeback” from a season-ending ACL tear during the football season to qualify for the state meet and also took third in the 100 meters in addition to being part of the two state championship relays.

Wells broke the state meet record in the 800 meters before being edged out by Herriman’s Tayshaun Ogomo who set a new mark in placing second “in an incredibly fast race.” So, Wells’ time of 1:49.57 now tops the CCHS board in the event.

White brought 21 points to the boys team, with one of the meet’s “most grueling event combinations,” with a second-place finish in the 200 meters, second in the 300 meter hurdles – with a school record time of 37.61 – and fifth in the 400 meters.

Ames was three-tenths of a second behind White in the 300 meter hurdles to place third and take the second-best time at the school. He also moved up the CCHS leaderboard in the 110 meter hurdles to the third spot with a time of 15.28 in the state meet, finishing fifth.

Lee was third in the 200 meters and seventh in the 100 meters while also running for the 4x100 meter and 4x400 meter relay lineups.

Springer, the CCHS recordholder in the pole vault, took third. Fiaui threw a 53-6.5 in the shot put, a school best, to finish fifth and also came in fourth in the discus. Carlsen tied for eighth in the 100 meters and Mayer tied for eighth in the 1600 meters. Wells, Doman, Cooper, Moore, Mayer, Etherington and Meier placed third in the 4x800 relay.

“The boys showed depth, grith and resilience despite midseason injuries and the pressure of defending a state title,” Dalton said. 

On the girls side, Henstrom “delivered a stellar” meet with a second-place showing in the 200 meters, breaking her own school record with a 24.61, and a third-place finish in the 100 meters – besting her CCHS mark with a time of 12.00 – while also helping the two state championship relays.

Valadez, an “outstanding sophomore,” was fourth in the 100 meters and seventh in the 200 meters, grabbing the third-best marks in both events at Corner Canyon with times of 12.20 and 25.38 respectively, along with her two state titles in the relays.

Peterson, also a key leg on the winning relays, was fifth in the 200 meters and seventh in the 100 meters.

Other top-eight showings at the state meet were Mikelle Molen (fourth, pole vault), Maryann Carlson (fifth, discus; eighth, shot put) and Wong (eighth, 400 meters).

“Our sprint dominance stood out with four boys reaching the finals in the 100 and 200 meters and three girls reaching the finals in those events,” said Dalton while also noting the eight school records broken this year in the boys 800 meters, boys 300 meter hurdles, boys pole vault, boys shot put, girls 100 meters, girls 200 meters, girls 1600 meters and girls 3200 meters.

“It really is a team effort. We do workouts together, we are dying together, we are laughing together and sometimes we are just going through the motions but we are motivated by teammates,” said Konan, adding with a message to youngsters in track and field. “When things get rough, just keep going. You already started, you might as well finish.”λ