CONGRATULATIONS! Cross country runner from West Seattle wins state championship, amid more success for her and teammates

West Seattle is home to a 2026 state-champion cross country runner! And she and her teammates – two of whom are also West Seattleites – scored big as a team too. Joe Corr sent the report and photos:

Some West Seattle student athletes who turned in remarkable performances this past weekend at the WIAA State Cross Country Championships.

(Elise Corr, photographed by John Decker, @xctfphotos)

On Saturday in Pasco, West Seattle resident and Seattle Prep junior Elise Corr won the 3A girls individual state title. She went to the front from the opening gun and never gave it up, leading wire to wire and pulling away to win by a commanding 20 seconds over a talented field of the state’s best runners.

Her winning time of 18:06 set a new Seattle Prep record, the fastest ever by a female athlete in school history on the 5K Sun Willows cross country course. It is also only the second individual girls’ cross country state title in the school’s history, and the first in more than 25 years.

The celebration didn’t stop there. The Seattle Prep girls charged to a 2nd place team finish, and West Seattle was at the heart of it. Three of the team’s five scoring runners call West Seattle home:

Elise Corr, Junior (1st place)
Macy Powell, Junior (16th place)
Ena Sparling, Sophomore (40th place)

The girls’ team is led by another West Seattle resident, head coach Aimee Corr.

The season isn’t over yet. Elise, Macy, and Ena will race again on Saturday, November 21, at the Nike Cross Regionals (NXR) Northwest Championships at The Course in Spokane Valley. NXR brings together the top high school runners from Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Alaska, and Hawaii, and it is one of the regional qualifying meets for Nike Cross Nationals.

Three photos are attached:
Elise crossing the finish line (please give photo credit to John Decker, @xctfphotos, a Vashon Island resident who has done an amazing job photographing cross country athletes all season)
The Seattle Prep team on the podium
West Seattle residents Elise Corr, Macy Powell, and Ena Sparling (left to right in the photo)

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