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PROVO — Total exhaustion overtook Brighton senior Kylie Hirschi as she closed in on the finish line of her 800-meters race.
Hirschi was dead even with American Fork senior Danielle West as both runners pushed themselves to gain even just an inch or two up to the very end. Both runners collapsed upon crossing the line. Hirschi needed to be helped to her feet and helped off the track.
"I would have never thought I would fall at the finish line," Hirschi said. "But I had no more energy left. It was like I couldn't even hold myself up. I just collapsed at the end."
Whatever pain she felt did not show in her expression. Hirschi wore nothing but a huge smile as she completed what will go down as one of the best individual performances ever at a state track meet.
Hirschi claimed 5A state titles in the 100 hurdles, 300 hurdles, 400 meters and 800 meters on Saturday at BYU.
She started things off by winning the 100 hurdles in 14.87 seconds. Hirschi next won the 400 in 57.11. She then finished off the hurdles sweep by winning the 300 hurdles in 43.39. Finally, she won the 800 in dramatic fashion — edging West by a hundredth of a second to win in 2:15.14.
It marked just the second time Hirschi had run the 800 this season. Her first race came at the region meet where she claimed a region title in the event.
Earning four state titles exceeded the wildest expectations of the Utah State-bound star.
"I couldn't have asked for any better way to end my senior year," Hirschi said.
Brighton teammate Aubrey Hale also capped off her high school career in stellar fashion. Hale won the 100 meters in 11.87 seconds and took the 200 in 24.58 to claim a pair of 5A titles.
For the BYU bound senior, it represented a perfect ending to a perfect season.
"When I was little I used always to look up to the older girls who took the state titles," Hale said. "I really wanted to be like them and now I am, which is fun. I love it."
Hale was not the only sprinter who exhibited a dominant side on Saturday. Springville junior Kaisa Rosenberg swept 4A titles in the 100, 200 and 400 meters. Rosenberg finished the 100 in 12.23 seconds, won the 400 in 56.44 and took the 200 in 24.85.
It was a heady accomplishment for the first-year sprinter. This time a year ago, Rosenberg was trying to make it as a distance runner before deciding to make the switch to short-distance races.
"I was tired of going around eight times on the track," Rosenberg said. "It's really nice to just go around once. It was kind of an experiment and it worked out."
Things worked out nicely in the end for Mountain View standout Kelsey Brown. After racking up second-place finishes in the 1,600 and 400, the Oklahoma bound senior bounced back to win the 4A 800-meters title for a third straight year.
Brown also set a new state record along the way with her winning time of 2:09.80. Getting the record, Brown said, all the work she put in the whole season feel worth it.
"I was hoping to take first in one of my other events," Brown said. "But taking first in this and getting a state record makes up for all of it."
Andrea Chavez joined Brown in claiming a state record in the 800. Chavez, a junior at St. Joseph, won the event in 2:17.81 to establish a new 1A mark.
"It's always been one of my goals," Chavez said. "I've always wanted to get a state record here."
Plenty of drama filled out other 800 meters races too.
Park City senior Gillian Gorelik completed a coveted distance sweep by winning the 3A 800 title after finishing in 2:19.89. Gorelik won the 1,600 on Friday and claimed first in the 3,200 on Saturday morning with a time of 11:30.86.
In 2A, Enterprise junior Tressa Lyman beat North Summit sophomore Erica Birk by a hundredth of a second — finishing in 2:19.00 — to win the 800. Lyman also defended her 300 hurdles title, winning in 46.62, after finishing second to North Summit's Erica Richins in the 100 hurdles.
For Lyman, getting a dramatic victory in her last individual event eased the sting of the earlier loss.
"I knew she was going to be tough," Lyman said. "It was just awesome to pull it out, even if it was by that much. That was a great race."
Several distance runners built upon wins from Friday.
Besides Gorelik, Davis runner Jessica Wilding, Ogden freshman Avery Calton and Birk all won their respective 3,200 races after winning 1,600 titles a day earlier.
Monticello's Macee Nielson prevented the repeat sweep when she finished in 11:19.25 to repeat as the 1A state champ in the 3,200.
Ogden's Lauren Crockett earned her second state title in the high jump. After claiming the 3A crown a year ago, Crockett cleared 5 feet and 7 inches to win the 4A title. Enterprise's Jodi Williams also repeated as a high jump champion — winning the 2A crown after clearing a 5-3 height.
Bountiful senior Karen Wilkinson had the best winning throw among all discus title winners. Wilkinson threw 130 feet and 1.5 inches to win the 4A crown.
Parowan junior Stephanie Harwood pulled off the short-distance sweep in 2A — winning the 100 in 12.95, the 200 in 26.31 and the 400 in 59.46.
Hurricane's Angela Shields swept both 3A hurdles races — winning the 100 hurdles in 15.45 seconds and the 300 hurdles in 44.93.
Several teams emerged as repeat winners in the team title chase.
Riverton won 5A again with 126.5 points. Sky View took the 4A crown with 78 points. North Summit was crowned the 2A champion again with 149 points. St. Joseph finished as the 1A champion for a third straight spring with 101 points.
Only 3A crowned a new champion. Park City rode unrivaled depth in distance events to score 105 points for the title. It is the first state track championship for the Miners since 2005.
EMAIL: jcoon@desnews.com
