Roberts gets scholarship to Arizona State

Distance runner Ian Roberts, the 2013-14 SBCC Male Athlete of the Year, accepted a scholarship to Arizona State during SBCC's Spring Signing Day last week.

Roberts will probably redshirt in the fall, leaving him with two years of cross country eligibility and three years of track and field. In 2013, he finished second in the WSC cross country meet and seventh in the state, earning All-American honors.

Roberts, a sophomore from Ventura High, didn't compete in track for the Vaqueros this year so he could save a year of eligibility. He was also being recruited by UCLA.

"I've always been a fan of UCLA and I really considered going there," said Roberts, who has a 3.42 GPA and will major in business. "But then I looked at the hard facts like the financial reasons and I thought they had a better vibe at Arizona State."

Roberts said he had a good experience at SBCC.

"In high school, I was a solid runner and academics weren't as good as I wanted," he recalled. "I wanted to prove myself here. My PR in the mile has improved by 19 seconds in just two years. Everything has turned around for me."

Roberts recently ran 3:48 in the Steve Scott Invitational at UC Irvine, which was six seconds faster than the best Community College time this year and more than two seconds under SBCC's all-time record.

Coach Scott Fickerson said Roberts trusted him from the start and bought into the system.

"He did everything we asked and committed not only to the day-to-day but to the big picture and developed just like he was supposed to. Arizona State was ranked 7^th in the West Region and they just missed qualifying for the NCAAs. With just about everyone returning and a young squad, I think they'll do great."