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Is there anything Jordan Koskondy can’t do? North Salem junior earns 4 state titles at 5A girls meet

“I try to stay as grounded as I can, trust myself and my coaches who have taught me everything, and remember that I’ve got it.”

By René Ferrán | Photo by Taylor Balkom 

Jordan Koskondy is the accidental heptathlete. 

Now, the North Salem junior is a four-time state champion — the first Class 5A girl to win four individual titles at the same OSAA state track and field meet.

She managed a hectic schedule at Eugene's Hayward Field to win all of her events Saturday, taking home championships in the 100 meters, 100 hurdles, 300 hurdles and shot put en route to athlete of the meet honors. 

“Sometimes, I have a little bit of panic switching my body from fast twitch to slow twitch,” Koskondy said. “But all in all, I try to stay as grounded as I can, trust myself and my coaches who have taught me everything, and remember that I’ve got it.”

Koskondy didn’t think about becoming a heptathlete until the summer of her eighth-grade year, when she sustained a hamstring injury that forced her to take a break from running events.

She couldn’t just take a summer off and do nothing, however, so she contacted the throws coach at North Salem and asked if she could teach her to throw the shot put. 

“I started learning and filling myself out, and I just started enjoying a little bit of all the events,” Koskondy said.

She sandwiched her victories in the 100 (12.49 seconds) and 100 hurdles (a wind-aided 14.65) around her win in the shot, when she threw a personal-best and state-meet record 43 feet, 3 inches, on her second attempt.

Then came her final event — and the only one not on the heptathlon slate.

Jordan Koskondy photo by Taylor Balkom

“I actually started the 300 hurdles this year,” said Koskondy, whose winning time of 44.04 moved her into the top 25 in state history. “My coach kind of pushed me into it, and it turned out for the best. It really pushed me and conditioned me, and it just showed my true grit.”

Now, Koskondy will start preparations for the summer multievent meets, including the heptathlon at the Nike Outdoor Nationals next month at Hayward Field. That’ll include spending time working on the javelin, her weakest event.

Would she add it to her high school schedule next year to improve upon that event? She quickly dismissed the idea.

“I feel like I can really manage my time and put in the time for every single event that really mean the most to me,” she said. “Which is the majority of them.”

Best photos from Day 2 of 6A, 5A, 4A Oregon high school track and field state championships