SOAP LAKE — Ephrata’s cross country teams made the most of their home-course advantage Thursday, sweeping both the boys’ and girls’ team titles at their final Central Washington Athletic Conference league meet of the season at Lakeview Golf and Country Club.

The meet also served as senior night, celebrating their final regular-season home race. "A great group of seniors," said head coach Lyndsy Roberts. "They will be missed as they set a high bar for our program."

Caleb Fitts led the way, winning the 5K race in 16:50.79, setting another personal best time. Teammates Maddax Iverson (3rd, 17:19.25), Niko Diaz (4th, 17:27.81), Cooper Black (6th, 17:42.06) and Cale Fronsman (9th, 17:51.81) all finished inside the top 10.

The Tigers’ depth carried them to a convincing team win with 23 points, ahead of Grandview (52) and East Valley (Yakima) (56).

Among the standout senior performances, Black ran a personal record of 17:42 and Iverson continues to be a team leader heading into the postseason. "Cooper continues to impress me and I am expecting a big postseason from him," Roberts said. "Thankful he ran this year! I am extremely grateful Maddax ran cross country. He's coachable and responds to any challenge. I know I can rely on him in big meets and in big moments."

The Ephrata girls’ squad also closed the regular season on top, winning with 30 points, followed by East Valley (Yakima) with 40 and Grandview with 54.

Savannah Harper paced the Tigers with a runner-up finish in 20:00.62, anchoring a tight Ephrata pack that saw Hannah Malone (3rd, 20:15.00) and Rebecca Wiser (4th, 20:15.90) cross less than a second apart. Sunnie Neff (10th, 23:27.00) and Annabelle Adams (11th, 24:02.06) helped secure the win, with Wiser, Neff and Adams each setting personal records and Malone posting a season-best time.

Senior Paisley Ribble also ran a season-best time of 25:52. "Paisley is peaking at the right time," Roberts said. "Really proud of the season she has put together this year."

With the win, both the Ephrata boys and girls sit third overall in CWAC competition, trailing only Ellensburg and Selah heading into the postseason.

Next up, the Tigers travel to the District Championship meet at Apple Ridge Course in Yakima on Saturday, Nov. 1, at 10 a.m., where they'll compete for spots in the WIAA State Championships. The top 14 girls and top 19 boys qualify individually, along with the top two teams in both divisions. 

"Saturday we need to have our best races," Roberts said. "It will be a great challenge, but I like our chances. It will be an exciting meet."