LOGAN, Utah – Adam Hendrickson and his wife, Jackie, welcomed their first child into the world on Oct. 2, 2019.
 
Running on fumes – literally – Hendrickson ran one of the best cross country races of his life just three days later at the 46th annual Lehigh-hosted Paul Short Run, hosted by Lehigh in Bethlehem, Pa.
 
In a field featuring more than 400 runners, Hendrickson was one of three Aggies to record a top-10 finish as he placed ninth with a time of 23 minutes, 39.5 seconds.
 
"My son (Lincoln) was born at about 10 a.m. The next day I was supposed to hop on a plane and fly to Pennsylvania to race," Hendrickson said. "My wife and son were able to be taken care of and I left for Pennsylvania with the plan to return right after my race on Saturday. I had one of the best races of my life, even though I had missed a whole night of sleep. The thing that made that special, though, is that my team made it worth it."
 
That's because the Aggies captured the team title for the third-straight year. In a field of 44 squads, including three nationally-ranked programs, Utah State placed first with 49 points, well ahead of second-place Penn, which finished with 144 points.
 
After winning the Paul Short Run in 2017 and 2018, Utah State became just the third team in the event's 46-year history to ever win three-consecutive men's team titles.
 
"I am not sure there has been anyone we worked with who was able to balance everything as well as Adam did," said USU head cross country coach Artie Gulden. "I don't know how he did it. An illustration of this is he was up all night the day before we left for Paul Short this past season because his wife was having their first child. A day later, he traveled with us to Pennsylvania. I was concerned about how he'd perform thinking mentally he'd still be in Utah with Jackie and Lincoln. But, he was able to focus on the task at hand and place in the top 10."
 
That's just the kind of senior cross country season it was for Hendrickson. The native of Brigham City, Utah, helped lead the Aggies to a 16th-place finish at the NCAA National Championships by placing 96th with a time of 32:05.8. Prior to that, he garnered all-region accolades by placing 23rd with a time of 31:07.3 at the NCAA Mountain Region Championships.
 
"I never doubted when Adam stepped to the line that he would give 100 percent, even if he wasn't feeling 100 percent," said USU assistant distance coach Sarah Griggs. "Adam was a leader. He always led by example and would never ask his team to sacrifice or do things that he wasn't already willing to sacrifice."
 
Despite being sick, Hendrickson placed 27th with a time of 24:01.6 at the 2019 Mountain West Cross Country Championships, helping the Aggies capture their first-ever team title.
 
"Every year since I got to Utah State, we talked about winning conference, and every year we fell short," Hendrickson said. "Winning conference was a five-year dream for me and seeing it happen was something I will never forget. Before the race I woke up in the middle of the night and I was not feeling well. As we were warming up for the race, I felt miserable. I had been consistently in the top five and we needed everyone if we were going to win conference. Going into the race I wondered if we would miss the Mountain West title because of me."
 
That wasn't the case, though. Much to the relief of Hendrickson.
 
"People watching me could tell something was wrong and I started to fall back in the race to a point where I was no longer scoring for the team," he said. "From my racing position, I had no idea we had won until after the race when coach Gulden gave me a hug and assured me that my teammates had stepped up and picked up my slack. Our team had won! I will never forget holding that trophy with my team. In the back of our minds we all knew that there was still more we would do that season."
 
Gulden knew how vital Hendrickson was to the success of the team in 2019. Utah State placed first in five of the nine meets the Aggies competed in, to go along with one second-place finish and one fourth-place finish.
 
"He was a tremendous leader and really served as a unifying figure for the team," Gulden said. "Obviously, his performances were great and helped a lot. But, every team that ends up having a special season needs great leaders to bring the team together. Adam and Luke (Beattie) really did a great job of that this year."
 
As a sophomore in 2017, Hendrickson and the Aggies earned an at-large bid to the NCAA National Cross Country Championships, marking the first time in school history they had ever sent a full team to the final meet of the season.
 
Ranked No. 27 in the nation going into the championships, the Aggies finished 27th with 603 points – despite having three runners go down early in the 10k race – at E.P. "Tom" Sawyer State Park in Louisville, Ky. Hendrickson placed 209th with a time of 31:44.89.
 
Hendrickson was also a key member of Utah State's distance squad during the indoor and outdoor track & field seasons.
 
During the indoor season, he competed in the mile, 3,000 meters and 5,000 meters. Once the team moved outside, Hendrickson ran the 1,500 meters, 3,000 meters, 5,000 meters, steeplechase and 4x400-meter relay.
 
Hendrickson was a two-time NCAA West Preliminary Championships participant in the steeplechase. Griggs recalled a funny moment with Hendrickson while the team was practicing water jumps for the steeplechase.
 
"Adam took a crazy fall and basically belly flopped into the water spread eagle," Griggs said. "He was completely submerged in the water and I thought for sure he was hurt and I was going to have to send him to the ER. He was banged up and shaken up a little bit, but overall, was fine. I am just grateful he didn't have to be carted away in an ambulance, but so disappointed I didn't catch it on video."
 
As great as Hendrickson was on the field of competition, he was even more impressive off of it. The son of Travis and Liesle Hendrickson graduated from Utah State in the spring of 2019 with a bachelor's degree in management information systems. He earned his master's degree in instructional technology and learning sciences this spring.
 
The fourth-generation Aggie was a member of the USTFCCCA All-Academic Team in 2018 and earned academic all-Mountain West honors eight times and Mountain West Scholar-Athlete accolades seven times.
 
"Being a student-athlete at Utah State is something I'll never forget," Hendrickson said. "I loved having the opportunity to perfect my talents more than I ever have before. I loved traveling all over the United States to go to races. The best part was being part of a team that was willing to sacrifice for each other in order to accomplish things that had never been done."
 
Hendrickson met his wife at Utah State. The former Jackie Heaps was a member of USU's cross country and track & field teams for four seasons, from 2014-18.
 
"We were on the same team for 1 1/2 years and neither of us were interested in the other," Adam recalled. "I then got injured and spent a lot of time in the training room. While in the training room, we would talk a lot and then head up to training table together. I guess the rest is history."
 
The couple has been married for 2 1/2 years now.
 
"When it comes down to it, Jackie and I are a team," Hendrickson said. "She is as invested in my life as she is in her own. My success this season was both of our goals. Graduating from college was both of our goals. Jackie was the best cheerleader; you could ask almost anyone and they would agree."
 
Hendrickson is not wasting any time in putting his schooling to use. Come this August, he will be teaching computer science at Roy High School and Weber Innovation High School.
 
"Adam was a wonderful leader and contributor to the team" Gulden said. "I will miss him greatly. The team will miss him greatly. But, we also have to thank his wife Jackie for being so supportive of him."
 
-USU-