Stokton Smith and Josh Ward are the two top cross country runners at Davis High. They have run together through all of high school and have made their presence known nationally. They hope to run as teammates when they advance to college as well.

Smith and Ward are not only teammates, they are childhood friends as well. “Stokton and I actually grew up in the same ward, and so we used to hang out when we were nine or ten years old. We used to mow lawns together.” Josh said.

Smith and Ward are both very proficient at what they do. Their drive and training has gotten them far and keeps them at the top of their heats. They both believe that they push each other to achieve more than they could on their own.

“He’s got great talents and gifts and I’ve got good talents and gifts and so we both put them together and it helps the team,” Ward said.

“Usually when he goes by me at the end of the race, he’ll say something as he goes by and it helps me to stay up with him. He really pushes me to be better.” Smith said.

Smith and Ward started running against each other as 9th graders and began running with each other as sophomores. They are very competitive with each other yet they also think very highly of each other. Both humbly believe that the other is the better runner.

“I’ve got to say that [Stokton is the better runner]. We go back and forth but he’s a little more consistent so when I beat him sometimes, it is by a bigger margin but he is more consistent.” Ward said.

“Josh. I would say Josh is better because he can push himself at the end of the race.” Smith said.