by By Dan Ninham
Terrance Villegas, 17, is known by his friends and family as Jayden.
“I am from To’Hajiilee, NM but do have roots in Acoma, NM. I am a senior at Laguna-Acoma High School,” said Jayden.
“I am half Navajo, quarter Tohono O’odham and quarter Acoma Pueblo,” said Jayden.
Jayden is a two-sport star for the Laguna-Acoma HS. During the 2019 cross country season, Jayden finished 14th at the state meet. He has been a Top 10 finisher at district meets in 2017, 2018, 2019 and a state qualifier in 2017, 2018 and 2019. The team finished third at state in 2017 and 2019. He hopes to receive college scholarship interest.
He has been a varsity basketball player since eighth grade. He is a 5’9 senior point guard/shooting guard, is a 1,147 points career scorer and was First Team All-District as a freshman and junior. He also represented NM in Australia at Down Under Sports Basketball Tournament in 2018. Jayden hopes to receive scholarship interest from colleges.
Jayden talked about his role as a student-athlete in his community: “As a Native American, there is a huge emphasis on respecting and learning from your elders. In the community that I’m from, I do respect them and intake many of their teachings that is provided to me. From this understanding, I translate that to respecting everyone else, including my teammates, coaches, fans and opponents.”
“Kobe Bryant has influenced me as an athlete,” said Jayden. “He had a passion and drive for the sport of basketball, he had a no-quit mentality and taught me to never quit.”
“My mentors are Anthony Mathis, Coach Dan Bachicha, Coach Peil, Coach Waquie and Coach Otero,” said Jayden.
“I admired Anthony’s shooting ability and leadership, he taught me specific basketball moves and he believed I could play basketball at the collegiate level,” said Jayden.
“Coach Dan Bachicha, my current basketball coach, pushes me to be the best on the floor and to play at my highest level at every single game,” said Jayden.
“Jayden is a sharpshooter with unlimited range,” said Dan Bachicha, Head Boys Basketball Coach Laguna-Acoma HS. “He is capable of scoring from anywhere on the floor. I want Jayden to play more shooting guard this year to give him even more scoring opportunities. Jayden made strides at the end of last year attacking the basket showing improvement going to the hole. I am looking for Jayden to become a better defender and become a more physical player next year. Off the floor Jayden is an honor roll student who excels in the classroom with a 4.1 GPA. Jayden is a co-captain that is always motivating his teammates to succeed on the court and off of it.”
“Coach Peil, who was my first high school coach, always believed I would accomplish great things at Laguna-Acoma, leaving behind many achievements, he also made sure academics came first,” said Jayden.
“Coach Waquie, my second basketball coach, always pushed me to be a better person and make the best decisions, not only on the court but in life as well. He wants me to be the best that I can be, to be successful and develop a better life for myself,” said Jayden.
“Lastly, Coach Otero has always taught the concept of teamwork and to mentally prepare and condition myself for upcoming races, he challenges me to be the best at every run,” said Jayden.
“I shoot around indoors and outdoors five to six times weekly, working on my shooting form,” said Jayden. “I lift weights three days, weekly. I run 2-3 miles, four to five times a week. In each of these exercises, I try to be better than previous exercises.”
“I get nervous before big races and games,” said Jayden. “I use music to calm my nervousness. When I get frustrated, I cope by encouraging my teammates to be and to do better.”
“I try to be confident in all the sports I play in, keeping a positive mindset, despite the outcome of the race or the game,” said Jayden.
“I pray to the creator before races and games,” said Jayden. “Before races I use corn pollen and pray with my teammates for a positive end.”
“Last summer before the 2019 cross country season, my closest friend, whom I consider a brother, grandma passed away,” said Jayden. “I was basically a part of their family, so it hit home. I was there with him and his family when this happened. It was hard for me because she took me in as one of her own grandkids. It also reminded me of when my grandpa had passed away years before. As I moved forward, I was not going to run for the 2019 season. As I remembered both grandparents, I wanted to run and make both of them proud, not only that I also ran because I did not want my brother do it by himself.”
“From that point forward that was my turning point and reason why I ran. As meets went on every week, I noticed I started improving, and then this big meet, which was held at Rio Rancho, New Mexico, I ran great, probably one of the best races I had but I was finally getting recognized. I had a mentality and determination to be the best I can. As the season went on, I was placing usually top 15 every race. Finally coming to the end of the season, I finished 4th at districts, 14th at state individually and finished 3rd as a team at state,” added Jayden.
Photo Credit: Terrance Jayden Villegas
So proud of Jayden he is one of my grandson too I nick name him “little Beattie.”