Jaynes begins quest for all-American status with 10K

Staff report

Augusta University’s Avery Jaynes will begin his quest to become AU’s first-ever all-American in outdoor track and field when he runs in the 10,000 meters Thursday night, May 22, at Colorado State-Pueblo.

Jaynes qualified for the national championships in both the 10K and the 5,000 meters. He will run the latter on Saturday night.

The senior from Southeast Bulloch High School in Brooklet ran a 28:59.21 to qualify for the 10K. That now stands as the Peach Belt Conference record. If he finishes in the top eight on Thursday night, he will make all-America. A top-16 finish will earn him all-region honors.

In the 5K, he ran a 13:51.61 to set another PBC record.

Jaynes led AU to its sixth straight PBC cross-country title last fall and was recently named AU male athlete of the year.

He graduated on May 9 with a degree in sports management and a minor in communication. He has been a regular on The Sports Squad podcast the last two years.

Jaynes and his family flew out to Denver on Monday, May 19, so that he could get acclimated to the mile-high altitude there.

The NCAA will provide a live-stream video at the following URL:

https://www.ncaa.com/liveschedule/2025/05/22

Tonight’s 10K race is scheduled to start at 10:50 (EDT).

William Amponsa of West Texas is the favorite. He is the only runner in the field with a time under 28 minutes.

The men’s 5,000-meter final will be Saturday at 10:30 p.m. (EDT).

Here is the website for the D2 championships:

https://gothunderwolves.com/sports/2025/3/12/2023-ncaa-diviison-ii-outdoor-track-and-field-championships.aspx