Carlmont’s Leila Velez has dedicated almost her whole life to sports and wants to continue her involvement in athletics through her career path.
Velez has been playing lacrosse since a PE unit in 5th grade. Living in Oakland, lacrosse wasn’t a popular sport. She then advanced to a travel club, which is where Velez plays now in addition to Carlmont. When Velez transferred to Carlmont in her sophomore year, she found a home on the lacrosse field.
Injuries, however, have been a problem throughout Velez’s lacrosse career.
A “nasty pop and crunch sound” almost ended her junior year lacrosse season and college career before they even had a chance to start.
“I wasn’t able to put weight on it and it was very swollen, but luckily nothing was torn,” Velez said.
She was stepping to block a goal when suddenly her knee buckled. She continued to play through the pain due to the lack of goalies.
“I just taped it up as best as I could at the trainer’s tent and played on the last day before I got home and realized I needed to go to the urgent care,” Velez said.
Later in her junior year, Velez was concussed and had to sit out the majority of the games, but made it back in time for the end of the season.
“In terms of my own personal stats and also for my recruiting, it was the biggest setback by far,” Velez said.
Velez said she got a late start in the recruiting process and didn’t realize how many opportunities were still open. Even starting the recruiting process during the summer of her junior year, she was still able to improve and eventually commit in February of her senior year to Cornell College in Mount Vernon, Iowa.
“When Leila came on her visit, she fit right in with the team. She’s very outgoing, so she’s going to be great for the goalie position,” said Meredith Meier, Cornell College’s lacrosse head coach.
Velez has also been crucial in helping the new Carlmont lacrosse players.
“She has been a big part of my development and growth in the sport. She has taught me so much and is a great leader on and off the field,” said Lauren Green, a JV lacrosse player for Carlmont.
Outside of lacrosse, Velez is very involved within the Carlmont community. She is the editor-in-chief for the yearbook, which requires a lot of delegating and ensuring everything runs smoothly.
“Working in the yearbook definitely translates to being on the field because I have to be there to help uplift my team and make sure we keep our spirits high,” Velez said.
Additionally, Velez worked with Carlmont’s athletic trainer, Jasyn Chidester. She learned basic first aid, medical taping, and helped athletes through injuries and setbacks similar to hers.
“I do aspire to go into that field, so while I’m helping him out, it also benefits me to get a better grasp of what the day-to-day of my future career will be,” Velez said.
Originally, Velez wanted to be a labor and delivery nurse, but working with Chidester made Velez realize how much she wanted to continue being involved with sports and help athletes recover from injuries.
At Cornell College, Velez plans to major in kinesiology and minor in sports management.
“It’s amazing to see how the sport has grown while I’ve also been growing with the sport. It’s amazing how far it’s come and the differences of how it was when I first started and where it is today. And now to say that I’m there to help the sport grow as well and introduce it to other people is phenomenal,” Velez said.
