It's been quite a year for Jefferson City senior Jacquelyn Walker.
Back in May, she won four medals at the Class 5 state track and field championships to help the Lady Jays finish third as a team.
On Tuesday, she signed a letter of intent to run track at Southeastern Louisiana.
"It was definitely a little stressful and not really knowing when to sign," Walker said. " I definitely knew I made the right choice after going and visiting down there this fall."
As of now, Walker will be the only athlete from Missouri on the Lions roster next year.
Walker said Central Arkansas and Arkansas State were among the offers she was considering. She even thought about the possibility of walking on at Missouri, but Southeastern Louisiana stood out the most.
"Coach (Corey) Mistretta was a huge part in trying to recruit me," Walker said. "When I went down there he just made me feel very welcome. I also met some of the team members when I went down there. It just made me feel at home."
Her new home will be nearly 700 miles away, but it allows her the chance to compete at the Division I level.
"That was my big goal, my big dream," Walker said. "And then kind of looking at the size of the school, of course. Then distance, obviously, didn't really matter. Then of course my program because I want to go into athletic training. That played a big part in it."
Walker won three of her four state medals last season in the 4x100-, 4x200-, and 4x400-meter relays, but her main event was the 300-meter hurdles. That'll be her main focus in college, except she'll have to condition herself for another 100 meters.
She said she'll be working on cutting her 300 hurdle time down in the spring.
"Definitely a time I want to get down so I can get my 400 hurdle time down," she said. "Just building in strength, lots of work in the weight room this season trying to build before I get there because college is a lot different and a lot tougher competition."
Walker will be joining a fairly young group of hurdlers at Southeastern Louisiana. All three of the Lions' hurdlers will be juniors when she arrives next fall.
By May of 2018, Walker is hoping she'll be competing in the Southland Conference championships.
"I definitely would love to compete at the conference championship as a freshman," she said. "That would be amazing to even compete there. Placing of course would be the dream."
As far as goals for her entire collegiate career, it might be too early to think about what level she wants to be at by the time she's a senior.
"I don't even know yet," Walker said. "Definitely conference would be a goal every year. Just placing would be nice."