COLUMBIA, Mo. – North Dakota cross country runner
Jadyn Keeler became the first Fighting Hawk to earn USTFCCCA All-America honors in UND's Division I history on Saturday morning.
Keeler finished 26th at the NCAA Championships with a 6K time of 19:13.5. With the finish, she became the first All-American at UND in cross country since Heidi Evans, who took 30th in the 6K at the 2007 NCAA Division II Championships.
By competing at the national meet, Keeler also became just the third UND runner to run at nationals in the Division I era, joining Yonca Kutluk (88th, 2023) and Patrick Kipkemboi (209th, 2020).
Keeler scanned her ticket to the NCAA Championships with a fourth-place finish at the NCAA Midwest Regional, posting a 6K time of 19:53.7. With the finish, she became the second member of the women's team to earn USTFCCCA All-Region honors in UND's Division I history, joining Yonca Kutluk, who took sixth at the 2023 NCAA Midwest Regional.
With the help of Keeler's finish, the UND's women placed eighth at the regional meet with 289 points, giving the Fighting Hawks their best finish at the NCAA Midwest Regional in school history. North Dakota took down the Power 4 schools of Nebraska, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas State and Kansas at the regional.
Prior to the NCAA Midwest Regional, Keeler won the individual 6K crown at the Summit League Championships with a time of 19:21.1. She dominated the competition and shattered the meet record by more than a minute to not only capture the title but also gain First Team All-Summit League accolades and the Championship M.V.P. award. Her time eclipsed the previous Summit League Championships record time of 20:32.92, set by Purdue Fort Wayne's Emma Rafuse in 2018.
Keeler's finish also helped the Fighting Hawks win the team title at the Summit League Championships with 34 points. At the conference meet, UND was trailed by SDSU (53 points) and NDSU (71 points). It was not only the first Summit League team crown for the cross country squad, but also the first title for North Dakota in any sport since joining the conference.
During the regular season, Keeler won four individual titles and took third at the Arturo Barrios Invitational.
Her season was highlighted by a win at Minnesota's Roy Griak Invitational with a 6K time of 20:57.3. She became the first athlete in UND's Division I era to earn a title at a Power 4 meet. With the help of her finish, the Hawks finished third as a team – the best team finish at Minnesota in North Dakota history. After Keeler's performance at the Roy Griak Invitational, she was named the M-F Athletic NCAA Division I Women's National Athlete of the Week. She also piled up four Kwik Star Summit League Women's Peak Performer of the Week honors during the regular season.
In the final week of the regular season, Keeler recorded the second-best individual finish at Power 4 meet in program history, placing third in the 6K at Texas A&M with a PR of 19:08.2. Her time currently sits as the 6K record in the history of the Summit League. Paced by Keeler's finish, UND placed seventh as a team and beat out the Power 4 teams of Oklahoma, Ohio State, Texas Tech, Houston, Baylor and TCU at the Arturo Barrios Invitational.
Post-Meet Notes
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Jadyn Keeler became the first Fighting Hawk to earn USTFCCCA All-America status in UND's Division I history in cross country. She finished 26th at the NCAA Championships with a 6K time of 19:13.5. The last UND runner to earn All-America status was Heidi Evans, who took 30th in the 6K at the 2007 NCAA Division II Championships.
* By competing at the meet, Keeler became just the third UND runner to compete at a national championship meet in the Division I era, joining Yonca Kutluk (2023) and Patrick Kipkemboi (2020).
* Keeler led UND in every race she ran this season.
