Jenna Zydanowicz, a 2020 graduate of West Hartford’s Hall High School, speaks about her career as an athlete, and now as a Division I coach.

Sports reporting is sponsored by Keating Agency Insurance

By Paul Palmer

“No dream is ever too big if you believe and have people to support you. You can accomplish it and enjoy the process.” – Jenna Zydanowicz

For former Hall and UConn track and cross-country star Jenna Zydanowicz, it is still all about being a team player and a team leader. Now an assistant distance coach for the Eastern Michigan University cross country and track and field programs, she strives to develop the next  generation of student-athletes on and off the course.

“I really wanted to get into coaching when I graduated from UConn. Being able to make an impact athletically and academically with young people is something I really wanted to do,” she said. “The fun part is working with the student athletes and getting to know them. You make those connections with them as the coach. We spend the most time with the student athletes so building this relationships is important.”

The 24-year-old now calls Ypsilanti, Michigan home, but her dreams started in West Hartford where she played multiple sports growing up and even into high school. That is where she made the choice to put away the basketball and focus on running.

“I think the chance to play different sports made me a better athlete. I decided I wanted to focus on running and make that my college career.”  She admits it wasn’t an easy choice but said it was her passion for running that won out in the end. “It ultimately led to where I am now,” Zydanowicz said.

It is hard to argue with the choice she made as she received both cross country and track and field All-State honors multiple years, along with being named All-New England Cross Country (2018, 2019), and All-New England Track and Field (2016-2020) and winning both CCC and Class LL titles while running and captaining Hall’s teams.

Her collegiate career saw her run up the road to Storrs and join UConn as a student and an athlete, where once again she earned success.

“I was able to be a captain and leader at UConn and that was one of my big purposes for my love for the sport. I think bringing [together] people brought me so much joy. In running there is always a next goal to strive for and when you have people supporting you it makes it fun,” she said.

During her time at UConn she found success both as a runner and as a student as a three-time captain for both cross country and track and field seasons. In 2024 and 2025 she was a qualifier in the NCAAs and while at UConn was a member of eight conference championship teams with the Huskies. She holds school records in the 1000m, 3000m, and distance medley relay and won an individual Big East Conference Championship in the 5000m in 2025 and collected 10 All-Conference selections. She also received Cross Country Northeast All-Region Honors (2023, 2024), and the Big East Sports Excellence Award (2024, 2025).

“Being able to run at UConn and have that experience I am extremely grateful for. Being able to meet the people I did and have those experiences I feel extremely grateful for those opportunities. I look back and it seems like a tough decision at the moment, but it was meant to be,” she added. “I think the friendships you build in team it creates an experience like no other. Now, as coach, being able to help student athlete experience what I was able to experience, and run at the NCAAs, and mentor and lead the next generation is something I found I was passionate about. Running creates such an amazing community. Everyone cares about the people that are around them.”

After earning her undergrad degree, Zydanowicz earned a master’s degree of Public Health focusing on the mental health aspects of being a student-athlete. Her Capstone project, “Breaking Barriers: Reducing Stigma in College Athletics Through the Development of Mental Health Awareness Games Toolkit,” is the basis for a program of awareness and avenues of conversation for student-athletes to openly discuss mental health challenges and find solutions to help them. “We had a working group of coaches, student athletes, academics, and mental health  professionals. I’m proud knowing that I was able to make that impact there and continue to make that impact now and bring that towards how I interact with our athletes.”

In her position at Eastern Michigan, she is able to use that knowledge and her own running career to help student-athletes realize their goals. “You have to have coaches that support you and are there for highs and lows. When you feel like you have that support, I always say that is when you do your best when you feel supported in all aspects of your life and that is one of the things I try to always bring to my coaching.”

Zydanowicz admits that even as a coach, sometimes you just don’t have all the answers and said that part of her job can be tough, but having her own similar experience helps.

As she gets ready to welcome her runners back for a new year Zydanowicz said she’s excited to keep growing and learning as a coach and aspires to one day become a head coach.

When asked what she would tell a younger Jenna about what her future holds, she said it is about choices and belief in yourself. “I feel so grateful that I had the support systems, leaders, and people that believed in my goals. Never give up on a goal that you think is too big. When I look back on college I don’t remember the times and places I finished but I remember the impact I had as a captain and runner and that is the most meaningful. Looking back, I wouldn’t change anything.”

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