by Larry Eder
Elise Stearns is a fine long distance runner, competing for the SWOOSH TC, based in Flagstaff, Arizona. In August 2025, Elise, after graduating from Northern Arizona University, took fifth in the USATF Outdoor Championships in the 5,000 meters.
Elise Stearns set most of his PBs in 2025: 2:10.84 (Feb 2025) at 800 meters, 4:20.94 for 1,500 meters (May 2025), 8:41.7 (Feb 2025), 15:08.07 for 5,000 meters (March 2025), and 32:33.18 for the 10,000 meters (April 2025). Elise has had incredible improvements while at NAU. We look forward to seeing Elise compete in the future.
Now competing for SWOOSH Track Club, and being coached by Mike Smith and Rachel Smith, Elise just finished seventh in the challenging USATF Cross-Country 10k championships in 34:33.1, on December 6, 2025, in the Glendoveer Golf Course in Portland, Oregon. The writer was very impressed with Elise’s run over 10,000m, which I believe was her very first (she has done quite well over 5,000 meters on the track and 6,000 meters in cross-country).
On November 22, 2025, in Mesa, Arizona, Elise Stearns joined her SWOOSH team mates in encouraging the NXR SouthWest competitors. Elise and her team mates encouraged the athletes and hung out all day. RunBlogRun spoke with Elise and her team mates, asking them for a training tip for the 3,500 high schoolers who were competing at the NXR Southwest and the thousands who competed across the country in the NXN Regionals.
#inthemixedzone, Elise Stearns, now a Nike Swoosh TC athlete, finished fifth at US 5,000 meters last summer. Elise gave #runblogrun a great tip for high schoolers on how to succeed at cross-country! #thejourneytocompete, #NXRsouthwest, #nikecrossnationals, #nikerunning,… pic.twitter.com/YIuhXf5U09
— RunBlogRun (@RunBlogRun) December 18, 2025
