Racing in front of a home crowd on the ISU cross country course is not a new experience for Jessica Huff, but bringing home gold medals for Iowa State is.

Huff’s victory at the ISU Open on Sept. 13 was her first win in a collegiate race, but before the race started she said she didn’t even want to run.

“Before every race, I get really nervous,” said Huff, junior in animal ecology. “I think to myself, why do I do this?”

Huff has a ritual to help her stay focused.

“I have this phrase that I say to myself,” Huff said. “Every day in every way I get better and better. I think of that.”

After that, it’s all out to the finish line.

“I try to stay with the person ahead of me and keep in mind things like striding out on flat ground and pushing up hills,” Huff said.

“I’m a 1,500 meter runner, so I think of the last 1,000 meters of each race as my race.”

At the end of a race, Huff reflects on her performance.

“When you do well in a race, it’s this huge adrenaline rush,” she said.

Huff experienced that rush at the ISU Open after defeating her opponents and running a race in which she said she felt completely comfortable.

“I got so many compliments from people,” Huff said. “They said it was amazing how comfortable I looked.”

Head coach Dick Lee noticed it too.

“Jessica is in the best shape she’s been in since coming to Iowa State,” Lee said. “She stepped it up to another level.”

“I got out of the hills and wasn’t tired,” Huff said. “I stayed focused.”

Although she did well in the last meet, Huff said she is trying not to have any expectations going into the next one.

“I try not to put myself where I can be disappointed,” Huff said. “I’m going to try to get off to a good start and get with a nice group towards the front and then see what happens.”

Huff said she hopes to keep achieving personal records and has a goal of getting the team to run in a pack.

Lee said that Huff helps everyone on the team to achieve their best at practices and meets.

“Jessica is very much a team leader,” Lee said.

“She sets a good example at practice through her work ethic and her verbal encouragement to the rest of the team.”

Huff has applied this work ethic to her other passions as well. She was unable to spend much time over the summer training for the fall season because she was working 12-hour days at an internship at Terpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge in Arkansas, taking care of lions, tigers and cougars.

“We spent all day caring for the cats,” Huff said. “It was hard to find time to run.”

Huff said that the rural roads were scenic highways with loose gravel and narrow shoulders.

She said that people often cut corners so it was hazardous to run there.

In spite of the long days and the break in her training, Huff said she enjoyed the experience at the refuge taking care of big cats that had been abandoned or neglected by their owners.

“I hope to someday own my own wildlife refuge,” Huff said.

Lee said he believes Huff will be successful in whatever she decides to do after graduation.

“Jessica is willing to do the work that is required to be successful,” Lee said. “Her accomplishments are things that she has earned.”