North Cook News

Persistence has been a crucial part of Ashley Sicard's track-and-field career since the beginning.

Sicard, a Wheeling native, told North Cook News in an email interview that her mother was a big fan of track and field, and that her brother competed in throwing events in his middle and high school days.

Ashley Sicard | Northern Illinois University

When Sicard was in middle school, her mother kept asking her if she was going to try out for the team. Sicard finally gave in.

“After I did, I found a talent of mine that I never knew about,” she said. “It was fun, and I was decent at it as well.”

From there, Sicard built a successful career as a thrower, one that has led her to a place on the Northern Illinois University team and a recent strong showing in shot put after fighting back from a severe knee injury.

Sicard wasted little time in garnering solid performances by qualifying for the state meet as an eighth-grader.

“It was a shock to me, and at the moment I felt like I accomplished something many people cannot say they have -- so I was happy and making my mom proud on top of that was the best feeling,” she said.

Sicard went on to win numerous first-place honors in meets for Wheeling High School (WHS), becoming the first WHS competitor since the 1990s to qualify for the state meet in both discus and shot put. Her first full year at NIU, the 2014-15 season, saw her get eighth place in the shot put at the Notre Dame Invitational in December 2014 during the indoor season, and a total of seven top-10 finishes in shot put and discus during the outdoor season, according to www.niuhuskies.com.

Sicard had qualified to compete in the Mid-American Conference Meet, but fate intervened when she suffered a knee injury right before the meet. She tore an anterior cruciate ligament and meniscus, forcing her to get surgery to repair her knee and sidelining her for the last indoor season.

According to Sicard, she came back in the outdoor season and qualified for the MAC Meet, where she finished 18th in shot put.

This season, however, she started with a bang. At the University of Illinois Dual on Dec. 3 in Champaign, Sicard claimed first place in the shot put with a throw of 12.51 meters. According to NIU's website, that exceeded her previous best indoor throw by more than half a meter.

Sicard said it was an amazing feeling to get first in her comeback.

“It was hard to get back in the game after being injured and trying to do better than I did before -- and to see that I had the ability to throw over a foot farther than last year just keeps me excited for the meets to come,” she said. “It gave me more confidence, and I know I can be more competitive this year.”

Personal goals this season for Sicard include qualifying in the MAC, as well as crossing the 13-meter mark in shot put and the 40-meter mark in discus.

“Throughout my journey here, I feel like I have completely grown as a competitor and teammate,” she said. “I was able to handle my adversity being injured and not being able to compete, but was able to support the team by making sure I kept up my grades and assisted them through practice any way that I could. I know that my injury did not stop me from working hard and getting stronger so I can throw farther.”