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Kenadee Wayt takes her academics very seriously.
However, the Wheeling Central graduate also takes track and field quite seriously, too.
So, she was disappointed when she found out she was going to be docked academic points in a graduate school class at Mount Union University because she was absent to take part in the NCAA Division III Outdoor National Championships in Rochester a few weeks ago.
As it turned out, a pair of national championships is a fair trade for a deduction of academic points.
"I graduated and two days later I started grad school with nationals just a few days away," Wayt recalled. "I was two weeks into those classes when I had to miss, so I had to do some things virtually and then run preliminaries a few hours later."
The path was complicated, but the gold medals shine nicely inside Wayt's apartment in Alliance.
Wayt is now a three-time national champion during this school year. She's also Mount Union's all-time leader in All-American finishes with an astounding 15 between indoor and outdoor.
If you're reading this and find it hard to believe, don't feel bad. Wayt, herself, has trouble wrapping her head around it, too.
"I would have never thought this was possible," Wayt said. "It's just unbelievable to me."
Wayt recently wrapped up her season by winning the 200 and 400 meter dashes. She placed those trophies right next to the 400 meter dash title she won -- out of the slower heat -- during the indoor season. Her three national championships ties her with her mom -- Heather (O'Shea) -- for the most in Mount track history.
"Outdoor was a little bit different because my whole family was at the meet and since it's a really different set up, I could hug my family right away," Wayt admitted.
Wayt won the 400 to get her day started, posting a 54.33. That set the tone for what lied ahead.
"That 400 really got my adrenaline going for the 200," Wayt said. "Plus, it calmed the nerves. I was able to just kind of relax and really focus on just running my race."
Wayt ran on both the 4×100, which finished eighth after a botched exchange, and the 4×400 to close out the day. The 1600 relay team finished third with a blazing time of 3:42.50.
Since the meet, the awards have kept coming for Wayt. She was named the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Division III Women's Outdoor Track Athlete of the Year.
"I was not expecting that award at all when you consider how many other top athletes competed at the national meet," Wayt said. "There were so many other people capable of winning that award, so when my coach called and told me, I was literally shocked."
Wayt's been recognized by the USATFCCC before as the national track athlete of the week on multiple occasions.
Her aforementioned commitment to academics was further proven when she won the Elite 90 award, which goes to the athlete with the top grade point average at the national championship.
Wayt took some time off since the national meet, but will amp up her work on the track again this coming week as she sets her sights on her upcoming and final indoor season. She still has eligibility for two more outdoor seasons should she choose to use them.
As a defending champion, Wayt understands she goes from being the hunter to the hunted. She also fully understands just how hard repeating is.
"Winning is really hard, but defending is even harder," Wayt said. "It doesn't happen nearly as often as people may think. It's just not common to have a back-to-back champion. My motivation, to keep training, is the same as it was last year because I know I am going to have to put in a lot of work if I am going to even have a chance to do it again."
Though Wayt is clearly committed to the Purple Raiders, she admitted that she watched Thursday evening's NCAA Division I national meet on television and sometimes wonders how she'd fare against that type competition.
"Those times are really fast," Wayt offered. "It would be cool for me if I was able to make a relay. I always thought I wonder how much my times would go down if I was competing each meet at that level, but I am honored and excited to be at Mount at the same time."