LOGAN, Utah - Utah State men's cross country runner Caleb Garnica has been named the America First Credit Union USU Student-Athlete of the Week for the week ending Sunday, Oct. 3. The award is voted on by a state-wide media panel.

With their sponsorship of the Student-Athlete of the Week, America First Credit Union donates funds directly to support student-athlete scholarships.

Garnica was the top Aggie placer last weekend at the 47th-annual Lehigh-hosted Paul Short Run as he placed first out of 357 runners in the men's Gold 8K race with a time of 23:29.4. The native of Springville, Utah, helped No. 16 Utah State finish fourth with 77 points – three back of third-place Princeton. In a field of 40 teams at the Goodman Campus Cross Country Course, the Aggies defeated one ranked team in No. 12 Iona, which finished 17th with 496 points.

Utah State's men's and women's cross country teams will return to action on Friday, Oct. 8, as the Aggies host the Steve T. Reeder Memorial at the Steve and Dona Reeder Cross Country Course. The men will race at 3 p.m., followed by the women at 3:45 p.m.

For more information on the Utah State track & field/cross country programs, follow the Aggies on Twitter at @USUTF_XC, on Facebook at USUTrack and on Instagram at USUTF_XC.

Nominees from other sports for USU Student-Athlete of the Week included:

FOOTBALL – Senior wide receiver Deven Thompkins (Fort Myers, Florida) tied his career high with nine receptions for 125 yards, including a 28-yard touchdown reception, in Utah State's 34-20 home loss to 13th-ranked BYU. For Thompkins, it was his third 100-yard receiving game this season and in his career.

GOLF – Senior Cameron Tucker (Ogden, Utah) was the top Aggie placer at last week's 11th-annual Mark Simpson Colorado Invitational as he tied for 33rd with a career-best 4-under 212 (68-69-75). Tucker led Utah State to a 14th-place finish for the Aggies' best finish of the fall season. After entering the final day in 16th place, USU climbed two spots to finish at 14-over 878, which included a 3-over 298 in the final round.

WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY – Senior Katie Haviland (Lehi, Utah) was the top Aggie finisher last weekend at the 47th-annual Lehigh-hosted Paul Short Run as she placed fourth out of 342 runners with a time of 20:03.3. All five of Utah State's scoring runners finished in the top 30 as the Aggies scored 91 points to finish third out of 38 teams. The Aggies beat one ranked opponent in No. 15 Georgetown, which placed fourth with 100 points.

SOCCER – Junior forward Sarah Taylor (Woods Cross, Utah) scored Utah State's only goal last week as the Aggies recorded a 2-1 double-overtime loss at New Mexico and a 2-0 loss at San Diego State. Taylor scored an equalizing goal in the 37th minute against the Lobos, increasing her season goal total to three. Taylor finished the week with four shots, including two on goal, in 138 minutes on the pitch.

WOMEN'S TENNIS – Senior Annaliese County (Highland, Utah) went a perfect 3-0 in singles play at the Utah Invitational. County started the weekend with a three-set win (7-6 (5), 3-6, 6-2) against New Mexico's Albie Huang, then followed up that performance with a straight-set win (6-2, 6-4) against Utah's Anya Lamoreaux. County won her last match against Weber State's Kenadee Semenik via retirement. County also partnered with fellow senior Gabrielle Dekkers and posted a 2-1 doubles record, including victories against New Mexico's Huang and Satoho Toriumi (8-3), and Utah's Anya Lamoreaux and Samantha Horwood (8-6).

VOLLEYBALL – Junior middle blocker Kennedi Boyd (Alpine, Utah) led Utah State to a 2-0 Mountain West home record last week with wins against Nevada (3-1) and San José State (3-0). Against the Wolf Pack, Boyd led the Aggies with 13 kills and hit a career-high .647 (13-2-17). She also recorded a team-high four blocks, while adding one dig and one assist. Against the Spartans, Boyd again led the team with four blocks, adding two kills. On the week, Boyd hit a team-high .444 (16-4-27), averaging 2.29 kills per set. Defensively, she averaged 1.14 blocks per set.

2021-22 America First Credit Union Student-Athletes of the Week

Aug. 30 - Ashley Cardozo, Soccer
Sept. 6 - Deven Thompkins, Football
Sept. 13 - Sammie Murdock, Soccer
Sept. 20 - Tenzi Knowles, Soccer
Sept. 27 - Bodin Zarkovic, Men's Tennis
Oct. 4 - Caleb Garnica, Men's Cross Country