Thanks to West Seattle High School track and field head coach Will Harrison for the report:

Wanted to pass along some special summer accomplishments from some of our Wildcat Track athletes who continued their spring season into a special summer season:

JUNE

At the U20 USA Track and Field Junior Championships held in Bloomington, IN, June 15-17, state champions Cass Elliott and Chloe Cunliffe competed well. This meet is considered to be the most prestigious youth/junior meet in the country, in which many of the top competitors have just finished their freshman year in college, and in which the top 2 athletes in each event qualified to represent the US at the World Junior Championships in Tampere, Finland. Elliott, now graduated and UW-bound, wound up 4th in the 400-meter hurdles in a personal best 51.72, and was the top high school finisher. Senior-to-be Cunliffe, representing NW Pole Vault and Seattle Speed TC, wound up 6th in the pole vault with a vault of 13 feet, 3.5 inches, the second high-school finisher.

JULY

(Chloe Cunliffe setting the 17-18 Junior Olympic National Meet Record in North Carolina. Photo courtesy of Tim Reilly)

At the USATF “Junior Olympic” regional in Bend, OR July 5th through 18th, Cunliffe cleared 14 feet even to equal the #1 jump for any high-school athlete in the nation in 2018. This mark also broke her own Washington state record. She would go on to capture the Junior Olympic National title in Greensboro, NC on July 27th for ages 17-18, in a meet record 13-11.

Also at the regional meet, senior-to be Rylee Farrison, representing Seattle Speed, ran a big personal best in the 400 meters, 50.12 seconds, to advance to the national finals. Now-graduated Joe Kirk-Woodbury (High Voltage TC), who placed 3rd at State this spring in the discus, qualified to the national finals in 3 events- shot put (45’10”), discus (143’8″), and hammer throw (157’2.5″). Elliott competed in the Junior Olympic National Meet and wound up 2nd in the 400-meter hurdles for the 3rd straight year, running in 52.13 seconds. All 3 athletes competed in the 17-18 age bracket.