Despite breaking Western’s school record this year, sophomore Kora Cook never really set out to become an elite high jumper. This Saturday, March 15, she’ll compete in the NCAA Division II national indoor track and field championships in Indianapolis, one of three Vikings who qualified to compete in individual events (Bec Bennett in the 400-meters, Kevin McDermott in the 3,000-meters) and the Distance Medley Relay (Bennett, Sophie Wright, Emmy Kroontje, Ila Davis).
The 6-foot-0 Cook, a biology major, holds the school record of 1.76 meters (5.925 feet), and is ranked No. 6 in the NCAA Division II this year. That she holds the Western record so early in her college career is not a surprise.
“I didn’t even know track was a thing until I got into high school,” Cook said by phone from Indianapolis Tuesday, March 11. “I was like, ‘I’m just going to go, stay in shape for volleyball and stuff.’ My mom is always like, ‘You excel at anything you put your mind to, so just enjoy it.’”
Signs were there that Cook, the two-time state champion from Uintah High in Vernal, Utah, was destined for higher planes.
Her parents put their high-energy daughter in ballet, soccer and volleyball. Cook says she’s competitive in more than sports.
“I’m a very sore loser when it comes to board games,” she said.
She describes herself as “stubborn. “I like to really work at things until I do well with them and get them right. I’m not one to half-ass things.”
Cook loves the technical aspects of high jumping.
“It’s all these little tiny details,” she said, “and when you get them all together and it’s perfect, it just feels so rewarding.”
Cook grew up on a farm (“horses and cows and chickens and stuff”) with three siblings in a rodeo family. Her dad, George, was a semi-pro bull rider. Her youngest brother, Jade, still competes in rodeo. Her mom, Shannan, played high school softball but was mostly “a farm girl,” Cook said.
Her freshman year at Western, Cook missed home. She also struggled with medication she took for painful periods. She stopped the medication and manages her symptoms better with more attention to her diet. “It’s been a lot of trial-and-error,” she said.
At her first national indoors this weekend, Cook said she’d be “ecstatic” with a top-three finish but top eight “would be amazing too.”
Always stretching for more, Cook said she’d love to do better at long jump, maybe eventually holding the school record there too. And yes, she has taken a peek at the Olympic high jump qualifying mark: 1.97 meters (almost 6-6). The 2028 Olympics are set for Los Angeles.
“It’s a scary thought, almost, in my head,” she said. “I’m like, ‘Oh, I’d never be good enough to go to the Olympics.’ But who knows, maybe one day. There’s (almost) four years till the next Summer Olympics. A lot can change.”
NOTABLE
While the start of the outdoor track-and-field season overlaps with the national indoors, one thing stays the same: Western records continue to fall like dominoes. The latest: junior Bennett, in her outdoor debut, broke the 16-year mark in the 400 meters with a 45.54 seconds run at the PLU Open in Tacoma held March 7-8, breaking Eleanor Siler’s 2009 mark of 54.59. It’s the fastest time in the nation in the early going. Freshman Jessica Polkinghorn set a Western record in the shot put with a 14.59-meter (47 feet 10.5 inches) heave, breaking current senior Katie Potts’ one year mark of 46-4.75.
At the Wildcat Opener in Ellensburg the same weekend, Western went 1-2 in the decathlon, with freshman Kaden Miller and sophomore Owen Windrope, respectively. More records to come, no doubt.
Dykstra named GNAC All-Tournament
Viking guard Demi Dykstra was named one of six players to the inaugural GNAC all-tournament team. Dykstra averaged 15 points per game as Western reached the GNAC semifinals before being defeated by Alaska Anchorage March 7, ending the Vikings’ season.
Western rowing starts season with wins
Western’s 2024 national champion rowing team opened the season with the Varsity 4 boat winning both races against rival Seattle Pacific in the PLU Invitational on American Lake in Lakewood Saturday, March 8. The Vikings’ Varsity 8 finished second and third.
“The PLU Invite is always a great way to kick off the early season of racing,” said head coach Courtney Moeller, in her first race as head coach after nine seasons as the Vikings assistant. “We saw a lot of good racing from the team as a whole today and are looking forward to getting back on Lake Samish to build on this momentum before our next race.”
Next up: the Falcon Regatta hosted by Seattle Pacific University on the historic Lake Washington Ship Canal on Saturday, March 22.
Crum goes deep as Western softball team splits GNAC Opener
Senior right fielder McKenna Crum made the first home run of her 158-game collegiate career a big one, hitting a grand slam to defeat Saint Martin’s University, 15-5, in a five-inning run-rule victory during a doubleheader in Lacey Saturday, March 8.
The Vikings, the 2024 NCAA Division II national runners-up, are ranked No. 9 in the nation after splitting a four-game series, and are 2-2 in the Great Northwestern Athletic Conference, 14-7 overall.
BEST BETS
1 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. Thursday, March 13, and noon and 2:30 p.m. Friday, March 14 – Softball vs. Western Oregon University, Bellingham. Note late schedule change due to forecasted weather. Two days of doubleheaders have fourth-place Vikings (2-2 GNAC, 14-7 overall) host WOU (4-0 GNAC, 10-13 overall), the early season GNAC leader.
IF YOU GO
Tickets. See wwuvikings.com/Tickets or in person one hour prior to game time.
Parking. Free for sports. For softball, C lots are free. See the map at wwu.edu/parking.
Can’t make it? Stream it
All home games and most road contests are streamed via a live and free YouTube webcast. Find links online at cascadiadaily.com.
If you have a smart TV, search for “WWU Athletics” on YouTube.
We want to hear from you
Got a WWU sports-related news tip or interesting item for this notebook, or a good story idea? We’re all ears. Send to newstips@cascadiadaily.com, subject line: WWU sports notebook
Meri-Jo Borzilleri is a freelance journalist and former 20-year sports reporter.
