A spring to remember

Rosas started with a win in the 10K on May 20, her tactical approach paying off with a winning time of 37 minutes 19.69 seconds over runner-up Ayded Reyes of San Diego Southwestern. The effort didn't leave Rosas with much left for the 5K the next day, but whatever Rosas had, she left on the track in beating Sara Toberty of Orange Coast in a wild finish to complete her two-title haul.

"To have this on your shoulders for a whole year," said Lopez, who had seven athletes earn All-American honors at state. "You were second, second and you come back and you are expected to win — that was really a tribute to her and to her discipline."

Rosas drafted Toberty for much of the race before both runners got tangled up inadvertently and lost their footing. Rosas sprang up first and was able to finish off the race despite her exhaustion.

"I just had faith in myself," Rosas said. "I was like, this is it. God gave me one more chance and you've got to take it. I felt good towards the end."

The significant success enjoyed by so many teams and individuals at Glendale college this spring uplifted the student body and inspired the entire extended Vaqueros family.

"There's a lot of sacrifice for the athletes to compete and go to school," John Cicuto said. "To see them put all that time in with their sport and then to achieve that success, not only is our athletic department extremely proud of those teams, but the school is, too."

By providing a distraction from the rigors of academic life, made even more stressful by budget cuts within the district, the exploits of the Vaqueros on fields, courts and courses over the spring semester galvanized an already tight-knit community where familial ties run deep, whether in the literal sense of the Cicutos or the broader sense of one team supporting another.

"It's a tribute to John Cicuto because it's like a family here," Osbourne said. "We all went to the other teams' games and rooted for them."

And whether it was the women's tennis team filling the bleachers at a men's event, track athletes coming from a meet to cheer on the baseball team or any number of alumni supporters coming out to watch history unfold, it made a difference for the athletes competing.

"The people that motivate me, the people that inspire me, they played a big role in my mind the last lap," Rosas said. "It was one very exciting race. I'm never going to forget it."

The spring of 2011 promises to linger long in the consciousness of those who populate the Vaqueros athletic department and the GCC campus at large, or for that matter anyone who has done so at any time over the years.

"There's a new pride playing for GCC," Osbourne said. "You want to make it two years that you'll never forget. Let's look for that way to enhance the sports and give them something to be proud of. Look at what's happened with baseball, tennis, track and field and golf."