WESTFIELD, Mass -- Every year, the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) awards the Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award to a student-athlete who has excelled in both the classroom and on the field of play while maintaining at least a 3.20 cumulative grade point average through their last year of athletic eligibility. This year, the MASCAC Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year has been awarded to Buccaneer baseball graduate third baseman Brett Velzis.

Off the field, Velzis maintained a 3.45 GPA in the classroom, earning his degree in Marine Engineering, and has been working towards his master's degree from the Academy in Facilities Management. 

Receiving this award caps off an incredible career on and off the field for Velzis, who filled his trophy case over the last four years as a Buccaneer, especially in 2025. In 2025 alone, Brett was named an All-American by the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) and D3Baseball.com, was selected to the All-Region teams by the same two outfits, and earned ABCA and D3Baseball.com Regional Player of the Year honors. That was all after he was named the MASCAC Baseball Player of the Year and named to the All-MASCAC First Team. Velzis earned MASCAC All-Conference selections in each of the last four seasons and was named the Massachusetts Maritime Academy Alumni Association Athlete of the Year following his senior season in 2024. 

At the end of the 2025 season, Brett is the program's all-time home run leader with 33, all-time hits leader with 191, all-time RBI leader with 169, and is in the top three in program history in nearly every offensive category. In 2025 , Brett set career-highs in home runs with 12, RBI with 61, hits with 56, doubles with 15, walks with 29, a batting average of .418, on-base percentage of .520, and slugging percentage of .799.

The Buccaneers are no stranger to receiving the MASCAC Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year award, as Velzis becomes the second to do so in as many years after Bucs football player Jack Mulligan earned the award in 2024, and men's soccer's Ben Paine received the award in 2021.