For one Mean Moose, development of character and education is crucial to offset his development in competition.
Jeremiah DeLaCerda is no stranger to competing, and winning, on several fields of competition. He’s fleet of foot as he finished 15th at the Class 3A state cross country meet with a time of 16 minutes, 52.4 seconds. And he’s tough as nails, capturing the 106-pound title at last year’s state tournament at Ball Arena.
Preparing helps him win. And winning is a reminder that he always needs to be prepared.
This translates across all platforms. He’s a member of the National Honor Society, he’s on Alamosa’s student council and he’s an editor on the yearbook.
Oh, and a state champion.
When DeLaCerda was nominated as a Positive Athlete, he jumped at the chance to utilize the resources available to him. As of Nov. 24, he had worked through 143 modules equating to 17 hours of development content. These modules are available to every single Positive Athlete nominee and DeLaCerda instantly saw their value in preparing him for life after high school and, ultimately, after athletics.
“It’s so uplifting to watch all these pros and successful people in their sport,” DeLaCerda said. “It pushes me to be a leader on my team and to carry their legacy and values into my sport. It creates good habits and shows that they had to push hard to get to where they are today.”
Denver Broncos great Champ Bailey has been a major advocate of Positive Athlete, especially in the state where he played most of his professional career. Although DeLaCerda is not a football, the message still resonates with him through the three sports that he plays for Alamosa.
And not in a way where he prioritizes personal achievement. Team success is equally, if not more, important to him than his own individual accolades.
“As both a competitor and a teammate, he leads not through words alone but through his consistent actions, faith, and kindness toward others,” Alamosa cross county coach Jennifer McQuitty wrote in his Positive Athlete nomination bio.
And he never gets complacent. He’ll be the first to knock out a school assignment after practice and he now gets in the habit of jumping into the Positive Athlete modules so that his development on and off the field continues to trend upward.
“It helps me stay disciplined in everything that I do,” DeLaCerda said. “Both (cross country and wrestling0 are mentally and physically demanding so you need to hone into everything that you do.”
and it has made him great at everything that he does. DeLaCerda quickly achieved the 100-module X-Factor milestone for Positive Athlete. He’s an all-state cross country runner and a state champion wrestler. And in everything he does, he’s only going to get better.
To nominate a Positive Athlete, head to the website to get more information.
