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07/20/2017 12:00 AMNick Afragola got a late start out of the blocks for his track and field career, but he’s certainly making up for lost time, while sprinting toward some big-time recognition at the collegiate level.
Nick, a 2014 Haddam-Killingworth graduate, started out playing soccer, basketball, and baseball for the Cougars. However, in his senior season with the soccer squad, Nick was encouraged by some of his teammates to test his mettle on the track. After joining the indoor team and running on a 4x200 relay that placed first at the Shoreline Conference and Class S State championships, Nick decided to go all in on track and sign up for the outdoor season, as well.
Nick’s journey then brought him to Eastern Connecticut State University (ECSU), where he took his freshman year off from track before dealing with injuries during his sophomore season. As a junior this year, Nick was healthy, ready to go, and it showed in his results. Nick took fifth place in the 200-meter dash for the Little East Conference (LEC) during the indoor season and then finished fourth in the 100 at that same championship meet in the outdoor campaign. Additionally this spring, Nick qualified in the 200 for the Division III New England Championships, where he finished eighth by running a personal-best time of 22.03 seconds to earn a spot on the All-New England Team.
“The spring of my senior year at H-K, I had a difficult decision to make between track and baseball, because I would’ve been a starter, and that was the team that made the Class M state finals, but it worked out in my favor,” says Nick, who also made the LEC All-Academic Team this year. “I didn’t do track my [freshman year of college], because I thought it would interfere too much with school, which I regret. Going into my junior year, I put my head down and wanted to be the best sprinter in the conference. Yet when I finished fifth at indoor LECs for the 200, it helped answer the questions I had about myself. At regionals for outdoor track, I wanted to show everyone what Eastern Connecticut track had. Before the 200, I thought it could be my last race of the year, so I blocked out everything else and went for it. To be able to say that I made All-New England just showed that I made the right decision to go with track. It’s a good feeling having that accolade.”
While Nick wishes that he had competed for ECSU as a freshman, he used the time off to his advantage by bulking up a bit and adding new dimensions to his skill set. Nick also upped his mental game before he stepped on the track in college, and that’s played a big part in his success with the Warriors in Willimantic.
“In high school, I was one of the skinnier kids. Taking that time off my freshman year of college helped me put on good size, and my explosiveness and form got better,” Nick says. “I began to put more time and dedication into track in college. My mindset changed, and I got more confident in my abilities to do track.”
Nick’s collegiate achievements come as little surprise to Haddam-Killingworth track coach Matt Diglio, who saw glimpses of greatness from Nick right from the opening gun.
“Nick is someone who came out for track and field late in his high school career. He was a soccer player and did other sports throughout high school at H-K before deciding to come out for the winter track team his senior year. He immediately experienced a great deal of success that first season as he showed tremendous speed on the track and was part of a 4x200 relay team that not only placed first at the Shoreline and Class S State Championship meet, but also crushed the school record, and qualified for the National Scholastic Indoor Championship meet that winter,” Diglio says. “He carried that success over to the spring season, where he ran the 100 and 200, as well as the 4x100 relay. I was very happy to hear of his accomplishments this year in college and hope he continues to have success during his upcoming collegiate seasons.”
Nick’s decision to join H-K track was a crucial fork in the road of his athletic career, and his time with the Cougars helped him develop the right demeanor to obtain his recent accolades. Still, the race isn’t finished just yet for Nick, who has aspirations of making some waves throughout the nation next year.
“I did track out of the blue while I was at H-K. I don’t enjoy the running part of track, but I love the competition of it, and having it be all on you. It made me want to continue it in college. My coaches at H-K kept telling me that if you believe you can do something, you will. If your mind believes it, your body will follow. My time there helped prove to me that it’s never too late to try something new, and I’m grateful to my friends and coaches at H-K for pushing me to do track,” Nick says. “I haven’t done any track workouts since this past outdoor season ended, because I’m letting my body heal up. I want to stay healthy, so I can do the workouts consistently. I think I can knock off a whole second for my 100 and 200 times. We want our team to be great and get it to be more respected. I hope to make it to nationals and, if my mind’s right, I know I can do it without batting an eye.”