ELON, N.C. – Although she is now one of the most dominant and decorated long-distance runners in program history, junior
Jette Beermann was once unsure of whether she was going to pursue a collegiate running career.
For Beermann, running had always been a pleasant, recreational activity that she enjoyed alongside her sister and friends. It was not until she qualified for the Under18 German Championships in 2020 – where Beermann did far better than she expected, placing fourth overall in the 3,000-meter race – that she started to see a past time have the potential to be much more.
"I didn't think of it as more than just a hobby," Beermann said. "I kept going with it and just had fun, and obviously as I got better, I was like, 'Maybe I could come over here and do this fun thing.'"
In her junior season with the Phoenix, Beermann has seemingly unlocked her full potential as a runner. After etching her name atop the Elon record books this season, the top-flight Rellingen, Germany native is soaring to new heights she never even knew were possible.
Ticket To Elon
Before Beermann committed to Elon, the
cross country and
track and field teams were winning at the highest level, with both programs rattling off back-to-back
Coastal Athletic Association titles in 2019 and 2020. While joining a winning team might have been part of her decision, what attracted her more was the identity the program had taken on.
"All the juniors and sophomores and seniors, they had built this amazing thing, not just the team trophies," Beermann said.
"It's more the team culture that they built," Beermann added. "It was just so appealing to me. I was like, 'I want to be a part of that.'"
Once she heard head cross country coach and associate track and field coach
Kevin Jermyn's approach to coaching – in addition to seeing her potential to be a key piece that could extend the respective dynasties – Beermann became very intrigued in joining the Phoenix.
"In collegiate athletics and running, it's easy for you just to get burnt out," Beermann said. "With coach Kevin, I feel like he individualizes his training, and he cares about you individually as a person and a runner."
"He wouldn't just put me through the exact same training that everybody else does," Beermann added.
Beermann said that after she heard Jermyn's philosophy, she had no need to talk details with other schools or coaches, she was sold on Elon.
"I'm so happy here, I wouldn't have chosen it any other way," Beermann said.
Taxiing The Runway
Even with her college experience beginning in an uncertain time at the tail end of the COVID-19 pandemic, Beermann made an immediate impact. In her freshman fall, she contributed to Elon's third straight cross country conference championship.
After taking home CAA Rookie of the Year, All-CAA honors and notching a 5K time of 17:12.93 at the Firetower Project meet, which was the second-fastest time in program history, it was clear that Beermann was just getting started.
Although she had a successful indoor track and field campaign in her first year, most notably notching a top-10 in program history with her 3K time of 9:40.01 at the Darius Dixon Memorial Invitational, Beermann was disappointed by her overall performance throughout the outdoor track and field campaign.
"[Because] I was a freshman, I tried to not put too much emphasis on the bad races. Obviously, in the moment, I probably shed some tears after a couple races, but that's the sport, and how we deal with it sometimes," Beermann laughed.
After finishing fifth in the 1,500-meter race at the CAA Track and Field championships, Beermann knew she had more work to do heading into her sophomore year.
Despite contributing to another CAA team title in cross country, contributing to winning the inaugural CAA Indoor Track and Field team championship and taking home Elon's only individual indoor CAA title in the mile during her second year, Beermann still said she felt like she faced a sophomore slump. She said it was frustrating in addition to facing various illnesses and nagging injuries throughout the year.
While Beermann considered her second year to be somewhat disappointing, it is evident that she sets a high bar to ensure she is constantly improving.
"My main goal is to keep progressing," Beermann said.
Even after placing second in the 1,500 and eighth in the 5,000 at the 2023 outdoor CAA championships, along with posting a PR in the 1,500 at the Penn Relays – moving into the top-five fastest times in program history – Beermann still was not satisfied with her individual results.
"I didn't quite get to where I wanted to be," Beermann said. "Ideally, I wanted to make regionals, but also it was only my sophomore year. I think that's why coming into this year, it was like, 'OK, now it's the year to go.'"
Junior Liftoff
Even though she had been creeping up on multiple program records and exhibiting clear improvements heading into her junior year, Beermann said that she was regularly encountering a subconscious hurdle, one that others might not have always seen from the outside looking in.
"Running seems a lot more like a physical sport, and it probably is, but for me personally, it also makes a huge difference how you approach the races mentally," Beermann said.
After Elon took home the 2023 CAA cross country title,
which marked the team's fifth in a row, and even with Beermann finishing third overall in the meet, she still felt like there was another level that she had not been able to reach yet.
It was not until a pep talk from Jermyn right before the 2023 NCAA Southeast Cross Country Regionals that Beermann said she experienced "a mental shift" that has been everlasting and for the better.
"My coach said to me before the race, 'To get something you've never had, you have to be willing to do something you've never done,'" Beermann recalled.
"Sometimes you need to hear things repeatedly for them to actually click," Beermann added. "I think that was the first time I actually took that and executed it. Before it was difficult to push myself through that last bit that really hurts in those races. But that quote, and what we talked about before that cross [country] race, I was like 'OK, if I want to have a different result from what I've been having this cross [country] season, I need to approach this race different.'"
She finished 18th overall in the 6K at the Regional, recording a new PR and school record of 20:19.5. Beermann propelled the Phoenix to an eighth-place finish amongst 34 other teams. Her performance earned her All-Region honors, making her just the third runner to ever do it while wearing the maroon and gold.
"I probably over-exceeded my own expectations a little bit," Beermann said of her performance at the Southeast Regional.
Beermann said her mental shift late in the cross country season was key in propelling her to dominant indoor and outdoor seasons.
Soaring On The Track
While her mental approach to running has changed throughout the years at Elon, Beermann said there has always been one constant during her time with the Phoenix – a supportive group around her.
"I have great teammates who make it easy to show up to practice," Beermann said. "They motivate me. And they believe in me."
Although Elon finished second-best as a team in both the indoor and outdoor track CAA championships this year, Beermann said she still gets to enjoy her individual victories, because of how encouraging the rest of her fellow student-athletes are.
"Enjoying my success with my teammates, it's just great when you know that they're happy for you," Beermann said.
Setting new school records in both the mile and the 3K during the indoor track and field championships – her 9:25.74 in the 3,000 broke her previous PR by eight seconds – was just a glimpse into what Beermann had in store for the outdoor season.
In the weeks leading up to April's Penn Relays, Beermann had set the school records in the 1,500 and the 3,000. Although she almost did not get to run in the 5,000 on what would become a historic day, Beermann took out her "frustration from another situation" on the rest of the competition in truly remarkable fashion.
"The Penn Relays are really busy, and the officials, after my warmup, didn't want to let me back in [to the track], so I got frustrated and I was crying before the race," Beermann said.
"I was like, 'OK, put your frustration in this race,' and I think it worked out," Beermann laughed.
Beermann edged out competitors from Northeastern and Penn State on the last lap of the event en route to a first-place finish while destroying multiple records in the process. She ran a 15:42.30 in the 5K, demolishing the previous school record by over 24 seconds and her own PR by just under 25 seconds. The time still ranks in the top-16 of the East Region this season.
Beermann's training is predicated on consistency. Although she cannot remember who came up with it, her ability to consistently find a second gear in the home stretch of races has earned her the nickname, "The Jet." Her tactic frequently puts her in position to beat out the rest of the competition at the end of long-distance track events.
Beermann also said she thinks her nickname simplifies what can be a confusing pronunciation for others, as her first name is pronounced (yet-TEH).
After taking home her first ever individual outdoor CAA title in the 10K on the first day of the 2024 Outdoor Track and Field championships, Beermann tapped into "The Jet" on day two to add even more hardware to her still growing collection.
Beermann entered the final lap in second place behind Hampton's Peninah Mutisya during the 5,000. Considering Mutisya had never ran a competitive 5K before, a casual, outside observer might have viewed a comeback for Beermann as insurmountable. However, Beermann said she was thinking quite the opposite even before making her move.
"With 70 meters or so to go, she had quite a lead, so I was like, 'This is going to be close, but it's not going to be over until the finish line,'" Beermann said.
With a little extra encouragement from the home crowd of the
Robertson Track and Field Complex along with support from fellow teammate,
Hannah Miller, who Beermann was lapping, "The Jet" made her move.
"I was about to pass my teammate with 60 meters to go, and she was cheering me on, and that was very helpful," Beermann laughed.
In dramatic, photo-finish fashion, Beermann won the 5,000 by just 0.1 seconds with a time of 16:12.98, beating out Mutisya in the last stride. Although Beermann knew she had won, Mutisya began a premature celebration, before finding out the crushing truth seconds later.
"I felt a little bad for the other runner," Beermann laughed.
Although Beermann's CAA championship in the 5K came up 30 seconds short of what she ran at the Penn Relays, her records set in April punched her ticket to her first ever trip to the NCAA East Regionals in Lexington, Kentucky.
Jetting Ahead
With key departures from multiple veterans from the cross country and track and field programs next year, Beermann said she feels ready and excited to step into that leadership role. She said that although she has learned the key to team success from her previous team leaders over the years.
"It takes everyone," Beermann said.
With both indoor and outdoor track and field coming up short of CAA titles, Beermann is confident that the Phoenix will be in a position to compete for more titles come next spring.
"It's not fun coming second, but behind the scenes, there was a lot that went well, and we did have some adversity to deal with, but next year hopefully we'll be challenging for the first spot again," Beermann said.
Although Beermann has many school records, championships and titles, her humble attitude and approach to running remains steadfast heading into her final season.
"I'm not taking anything for granted," Beermann said. "You can't put too much emphasis on the bad, but also, obviously, not too much on the good either."
While she is already looking ahead to cross country's possible six-peat in the fall, Beermann still has at least one guaranteed contest left in this outdoor track season.
"[I am] excited to be focusing on running rather than school," Beermann said.
Beermann is set to race in the 5,000-meter semifinals as the No. 11 seed in the NCAA East Regionals at 8:10 p.m. on Saturday, May 25.
"I didn't expect that I'd get there and be in such a good position, but that gives me even more of a reason to enjoy being there and embracing the race," Beermann said.
'Rising Phoenix' is a new student-led initiative to cover Elon Athletics. Through innovative content creation and storytelling, Elon University students will have the opportunity to highlight the moments, people and events that make an impact, leveraging the athletic department's various web and social media platforms for distribution. Follow Rising Phoenix on Twitter (@EURisingPhoenix) and Instagram (@elonrisingphoenix). Interested in joining this initiative as a content creator (video, graphics, writing, storytelling, or more)? Contact Jacob Kisamore at jkisamore@elon.edu.
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