Senior Jordan Mornout is a member of the women’s cross country team. She recently earned first place in the women’s mile at the Greyhound Classic hosted by University of Indianapolis and has earned Academic All-GLVC honors for three straight seasons.
The Shield: As a Fort Wayne native, what made you decide to come to USI?
Mornout: Definitely the cross country program. (Mike) Hillyard is a lot like my high school coach was, so it was a good match.
The Shield: With this being your senior year, what are you going to miss the most about USI?
Mornout: Definitely athletics and my team. We’re all really close, the girls and the guys. We all do the same stuff and we have gotten to know each other a lot over the last four years. That’s pretty much my family.
The Shield: How have you grown as an athlete since your freshman year?
Mornout: With running, a lot of it can be based on natural talent. I think I have a decent amount of that, but when you get to this kind of level, you have to accept a new kind of demand for a high work ethic and can’t get too far if you’re relying on natural talent. You have to pour a lot of yourself into it. It was an adjustment I was willing to make, but it was definitely an adjustment.
The Shield: Can you describe what you felt after finishing in first place in the women’s mile at the Greyhound Classic?
Mornout: Excitement, definitely. It wasn’t my best time, but it was the best time of my season so far so that was a sign of improvement and it’s a good set up for things to come.
The Shield: You have earned Academic All-GLVC honors for 3 straight seasons. How do you juggle both academics and athletics?
Mornout: It really wasn’t too hard until the last two years or so once I got into my major courses. My high school prepared me really well for college, it was hard. I have a better GPA now in college than I did in high school and I just think that comes with caring more and being well prepared. Once I got into these last couple years, being in harder 400 level classes, it has been tougher. I think you just do it. I’ve done it for the past 8 years and I’m just used to it, but it’s definitely a balance.
The Shield: What is the most important thing that being a college athlete has taught you?
Mornout: Two things: one – going back to the work ethic, I just think that’s a really big thing and I think it’s really good for all aspects of life. I just have this attitude that if I start something, I have to finish it. And two – teamwork. I think it’s very applicable to everything. I have this really, really big pride in what this group of girls can do together and I take pride in how we work together and how we accomplish things, so I think taking that into other aspects of life will be good.
The Shield: What is your favorite moment from this season so far?
Mornout: Well, we only ran two races so it’s still pretty early. I’m going to have to say the mile last weekend. I had an injury over winter break so I was a little behind in training. The weekend before, I ran a 5:30 mile and I cut 12 seconds off my time. So I was in a little better shape than I thought I was.
The Shield: What would you like to be remembered for?
Mornout: I think being a good leader and being positive and bringing a good influence to the team and giving something to the legacy.
The Shield: What do you plan to do after graduation?
Mornout: Looking for some kind of teaching job, I would love to be able to teach and coach.
The Shield: Are there any other sports that you enjoy and are interested in?
Mornout: I like playing volleyball, but I’m awful. I really like badminton. That’s a really random one but I like it. I am awful at coordination. I learned that at a young age, so running is kind of the only thing I was alright at.
The Shield: Is that why you chose running?
Mornout: My dad ran and he definitely had a lot of influence on me. But yeah, you obviously want to do what you’re good at.
The Shield: What do you love most about running?
Mornout: There’s always this moment in the race where you just really want to quit and you hate your life, especially during cross country, and sometimes you give in and do (quit) but sometimes you don’t and you push. I just think that getting to that moment of total weakness and overcoming it, there’s a lot of pride in that and you discover a lot about yourself in that. It’s a cool feeling.
The Shield: What athletes have influenced you?
Mornout: I really don’t follow professional runners. I’ll be cheesy and say my dad. He ran. He wasn’t great or anything, but he was a really great role model for me.
The Shield: Who are your biggest motivators?
Mornout: My teammates. We’re all going through the same type of things all the time and there’s always at least one person that’s injured. My friend, Sarah, got in a really bad accident and that was a really big moment of us all being there for each other. There’s always something going on and we always have each other’s backs and, knock on wood, I hope something like that doesn’t happen to me or someone else but when it does, they will be there and support each other.