Jayd Eggert has high expectations for herself this coming season

“I definitely want to get back to the NCAA finals,” Eggert said. “That’s my main goal this year. Definitely in the next few years, I want to go to Eugene, Ore., for the final round.”

Last season as a freshman on the UND track and field team, Minot-native Jayd Eggert earned USA Track and Field All-America honors after placing fourth in the javelin at the U.S. Junior Track and Field Championships in June.

“Last season was a huge shock,” Eggert said. “Coming in and being one of four freshman to go to junior nationals … it was amazing to be there and be recognized in that group.”

Eggert recorded a throw of 45.61 meters in the final flight of the championships at Drake Stadium, which earned her fourth place and honors awarded to the top eight finishers in each event.

Before college, Eggert was a standout in high school track for four years as she qualified for the state meet nine times. But Eggert wasn’t a single sport competitor — she served as team captain in both volleyball and basketball as a senior and in the same year earned all-tournament honors in basketball.

“My favorite sport varied from season to season,” Eggert said. “I’m a very ‘in the moment’ person.”

Competing at a college level wasn’t a reality for Eggert until she started getting offers from schools.

“I knew I wanted to do track and field collegiately when I started getting recruited by big schools,” she said. “It seemed like the right fit for me. Especially at an individual level, you get out what you put in — and that was really appealing to me.”

Eggert thrives on being accountable for herself.

“Competing at the collegiate level is a lot different from high school,” Eggert said. “Just the determination that you need to compete is so much different — the coaches care so much more, and the athletes want to be there and want to work, so it’s awesome to be an athlete at this level.”

In addition to her outstanding performance on the field, Eggert works hard in the classroom and was one of two UND track participants to be named to the USTFCCA All-Academic Track and Field Team last season.

Qualifying for the team isn’t an easy feat. Athletes must have a cumulative grade point average of 3.25 and also meet one of the following athletic standards: to have finished the indoor regular season ranked in the national top 96 in an individual event or ranked in the national top 48 in a relay event, or for the outdoor season to have participated in any round of the NCAA Division I Championships.

“Academics have always been a huge part of my life,” Eggert said. “My mom has always pushed to do your homework and go to school … it really wasn’t a huge shock to me. It was tough to balance at first, but after a while you just kind of get into a rhythm and it isn’t that big of a change … I’m going to be a school counselor. Hopefully I’ll get a rehabilitation and human service major and then get a masters in school counseling.”

The women’s track team recently competed at the Dakota Duals meet in Fargo, and will head to the Northwest Open in Minneapolis.

Marie Monson is a staff writer for The Dakota Student. She can be reached at [email protected].