The hero is Jake Velazquez, a senior at Keene State College. He was born in Keene, and made a name for himself as a cross country runner at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, which competes in NCAA’s top division.
Then he decided to come home to Keene State College, as a fifth-year, and his decision has made a huge difference in the success of Keene State’s Cross Country program:
- He’s the first Keene State All-American runner in 20 years.
- He was named the NCAA East Region Runner of the Year last fall.
- In November, the Keene State men’s cross country team won its first title in nine years in the Little East Conference Championship.
- As the team’s most experienced competitor, he has become a mentor for Keene State’s youngest runners.
- And he has hidden talents: He sang the national anthem before a Keene State basketball game.
Velazquez started running in the seventh grade, for a good reason: “I had a lot of energy as a kid, and running was the only thing that could calm me down.” And, he learned he was good at it.
“Jake has had tremendous success as a runner, but it comes from his tremendous work ethic,” said Marty Testo, director of athletics at Keene State.
He has passed that work ethic along to other Keene State runners.
“Jake was a catalyst and pushed a very talented group of young runners to be even better. I think he paved the way for what that program can continue to do,” Testo said.
Pushing those runners has been good for Velazquez, too.
“The team is really young,” he said. “It’s basically just me as the oldest guy, so I’ve enjoyed guiding the younger runners. It’s been a rewarding experience, and it’s even made me consider coaching as a future career. I wanted to share my knowledge because I knew it could help the team, and in the end, it definitely paid off.”
It certainly did, said Dan Roark, head coach of the Keene State Men’s Cross Country team.
“He definitely makes an impact on the team by showing what it takes to be an All-American athlete and compete at that level,” Roark said.
So, what’s next after he graduates this spring?
“People keep asking me what I’m going to do after college,” Velazquez said. “I’ll probably take a long break from competitive running to reassess what I want to do [and] really think about what’s next and whether I want to continue competing at this level.”
Whatever he decides, though, he already has a head start.
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