Ferndale senior Katie Manly is a three-time state cross country competitor.
“It’s a really cool experience because there were so many schools and it was great to run against the best runners in the state,” Manly said. “I think I have done pretty good, since running on a golf course is much different than other meets.”
Manly began the 2024 season by placing 11th out of 134 runners at the Gear Up Northwest XC Preview meet on Sept. 14 at Civic Stadium. She also won her first Northwest Conference meet against Sehome and Blaine in 16:52.8 seconds. She said she fell in love with running while doing jogathons in elementary school.
“Every year I tried to get more laps around the track,” Manly said. “In seventh grade, I found out about cross country and was excited to challenge myself.”
Manly is also a part of the Ferndale track and field team in the spring. She competes in the 400-meter, 800-meter, 1600-meter, 3200-meter, 4×400 relay and pole vault. Last season, she finished 10th in the 800, ninth in the 1600 and 15th in the 3200 at the 3A District 1 Championships.
As a freshman in 2021, Manly finished 98th at the 3A state meet in 20:54.80 seconds, was 108th as a sophomore in 2022 with a time of 21:11.40 and 113th as a junior in 2023 with a time of 20:57.90.
As a senior, Manly has stepped into a leadership role for both teams.
“I like helping the underclassmen find their love for running and have them look up to me,” Manly said. “Hopefully I can be a role model with my determination and love for running.”
Manly tries to help the underclassmen push through the tough days, too. She says not every day will be as good as the last workout. So, Manly reminds her teammates to forget about the tough workouts and push forward to the next day.
Ferndale’s cross country and track and field teams also have helped Manly find her community.
“I love to see their presence when I am running,” Manly said. “It motivates me to do better and has made me a more determined person.”
She is looking forward to spending time with her friends before graduating and hopes to compete in college.
Nick Zeller-Singh is CDN's sports reporter; reach him at nickzellersingh@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 104.
