Utah State University Athletics

HONORS: Second-Team All-Mountain West: Cross Country (2024); Elite 90 Award: Cross Country (2024); Mountain West Cross Country Freshman of the Week (9/27/22; 10/25/22); USTFCCCA All-Academic Team (2025 T&F); CSC Academic All-American (2025); CSC Academic All-District (2024, 2025); Academic All-Mountain West (2023 T&F, 2023 XC, 2024 T&F, 2024 XC, 2025 T&F); Mountain West Scholar-Athlete (2022 XC, 2023 T&F, 2023 XC, 2024 T&F, 2024 XC, 2025 T&F); USU Whitesides Scholar-Athlete (2023, 2024, 2025).

INDOOR RECORDS: Ranks third all-time at USU in the 3,000 meters with a time of 8:03.74, set in 2025… Ranks ninth all-time at USU in the 5,000 meters with a time of 14:06.81, set in 2025… Holds the George Nelson Fieldhouse facility record in the 3,000 meters with a time of 8:23.27, set in 2024.

OUTDOOR RECORDS: Owns the Utah State record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 8:33.91, set in 2025.

2025 (JR)
Cross Country (2024): Placed 10th at the UC Riverside Invitational with an 8K time of 23:47.1… Finished 38th at the Lehigh-hosted Paul Short Run with an 8K time of 24:12.9… Took 196th at the Wisconsin Pre-Nationals with an 8K time of 24:36.9… Placed 13th, best among all USU runners, at the Mountain West Championships with an 8K time of 24:47.5, earning second-team all-MW honors and helping Utah State finish sixth… Finished 39th at the NCAA Mountain Region Championships with a 10K time of 30:05.3, helping the Aggies to a fourth-place finish and at-large nationals berth… Took 203rd at the NCAA Cross Country Championships with a 10K time of 30:51.6… Earned the Elite 90 award, an honor presented to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade-point average participating at the finals site for each of the NCAA’s championships.
Indoor: Placed 30th in the 3,000 meters at the Mountain West Indoor Championships with a time of 8:34.60… Set a personal best in the 5,000 meters with a time of 14:06.81 as he placed 100th at the Boston University-hosted Valentine Invitational… Ran a personal-best time of 8:03.74 in the 3,000 meters at the Washington Invitational, placing 16th… Won the 3,000 meters at the Idaho State-hosted Snake River Open with a time of 8:16.61.
Outdoor: Set the Utah State record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 8:33.91 as he placed 11th at the Azusa Pacific-hosted Bryan Clay Invitational… Finished 46th in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the NCAA West First Rounds with a time of 9:48.24… Took 13th in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the Mountain West Outdoor Championships, finishing in 9:46.69.

2024 (SO)
Cross Country (2023): Opened the season by placing 13th at the Utah State-hosted Sagebrush Invitational with a 7K time of 22:15… Finished third with a 10K time of 32:55.00 at the Nevada-hosted 2024 NCAA Mountain Regional Preview, helping Utah State win the team title… Placed eighth at the Utah State-hosted Steve T. Reeder Memorial with a 7K time of 21:23.02, boosting Utah State to a team title victory… Took 13th with an 8K time of 25:24.1 in the B race at the Wisconsin-hosted Nuttycombe Invitational… Placed 31st with an 8K time of 24:26.0 at the Mountain West Championships as Utah State finished fifth… Finished 70th with a 10K time of 30:50.0 at the NCAA Mountain Region Championships.
Indoor: Finished 17th in the 3,000 meters with a time of 8:23.72 at the Mountain West Indoor Championships… Won the mile with a personal-record time of 4:11.19 at the New Mexico-hosted Don Kirby Invitational… Won the 3,000 meters with a season-best time of 8:23.27 at the Utah State-hosted Roman Ruiz Speed and Power Meet.
Outdoor: Placed 28th in the 3,000-meter steeplechase quarterfinals with a time of 9:06.13 at the NCAA West First Rounds… Finished fourth in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 8:47.80 at the Mountain West Outdoor Championships… Set a season best in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 8:44.88, which ranks sixth in school history, as he took 26th at the Azusa Pacific-hosted Bryan Clay Invitational… Won his section of the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 8:49.17 at the Stanford Invitational… Set a personal best in the 1,500 meters with a time of 3:51.81 as he finished third at the Utah Tech Invitational.

2023 (FR)
Cross Country (2022): Began his collegiate career by placing 18th with a 7K time of 22:29 at the Utah State-hosted Sagebrush Invitational, helping the Aggies place first as a team… Earned his first Mountain West Freshman of the Week honor after capturing his first collegiate title at the Idaho State Open, finishing the 6K race with a time of 18:25.0 to help Utah State place first as a team… Garnered his second MW Freshman of the Week accolade after helping the Aggies finish first at the Utah Open, placing third with a 6K time of 19:14.3… Helped lead the Aggies to the team title at the Utah State-hosted Steve T. Reeder Memorial Invitational, placing 20th with a 7K time of 22:36.44… Finished 53rd with an 8K time of 24:58.6 in the Open Race at the Lehigh-hosted Paul Short Run.
Indoor: Won the 3,000 meters with a season-best time of 8:39.29 at the Utah State-hosted Speed and Power Meet… Set a season best in the 5,000 meters with a time of 15:06.74 as he placed sixth at the Idaho State-hosted Stacy Dragila Invitational.
Outdoor: Finished ninth in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a season-best time of 9:02.62 at the Mountain West Outdoor Championships… Finished third at the Fresno State Invitational (9:07.64) and fourth at the San Francisco State-hosted Mike Fanelli Track Classic (9:07.75) in the 3,000-meter steeplechase.

HIGH SCHOOL: Three-time letterwinner in cross country and two-time letterwinner in track at Springville (Utah) High School… Helped Springville HS to Region 8 Cross Country Championships in 2019 and 2020 and a Region 9 Championship in 2021 as a senior where he placed first overall… Finished fifth at the UHSAA Class 5A State Cross Country Championships as a senior… Placed second at the Region 8 Cross Country Championships in 2020 as a junior and third in 2019 as a sophomore… Competed in the 800 meters, 1,600 meters and 3,200 meters as a senior at the UHSAA State Championships, placing 27th, fifth and 12th, respectively… Earned academic all-state for cross country and track & field.

PERSONAL: Son of Alfredo and Stacy Garnica… Has two older brothers… Brother, Caleb, was a member of the track and cross country teams at USU from 2018-2023, while his other brother, Brandon, was a member of BYU’s track and cross country teams… Graduated with a bachelor’s degree in human development and family studies in May 2025… Pursuing an Educational Specialist degree in School Psychology.

PERSONAL BESTS INCLUDE: