The OEC Character Champion Award is given annually to the Orange Empire Conference male and female student-athlete that exhibits high character traits of sportsmanship, respect, caring, fairness, civility, honesty, integrity, and responsibility. Two athletes from Golden West College were among the finalist to earn this prestigious award. Lauren Lingle (Women’s Water Polo and Swimming), and Alex Bayus (Baseball) were the two individuals who were nominated by the college.
Lauren Lingle (Women’s Water Polo and Swim)
During Lauren Lingle’s time at Golden West College she has revealed herself to be a confident, capable, intelligent and industrious student-athlete. She successfully took the fundamentals of our program and not only applied them in the water, but in the classroom. By excelling and working hard every day she became the team’s leader, respected by all of her teammates and peers. She perfectly works to do what is best for her team by sacrificing her time to take care of a teammate, being a fair judge to solve a problem between teammates, being honest about her personal abilities which will benefit the team’s success, at the end of an eight hour bus trip being the last one off the bus to ensure it is more clean than when we first boarded, showing sportsmanship to an opponent of another team after just beating them during the semi-final game of State Championships. Lauren’s positive attitude every day, regardless of how she feels physically motivates those around her to do their best, including the staff she encounters on a daily basis. Through all of her dedication to Golden West College, she has been accepted to attend California State University, Long Beach to continue her athletic and academic endeavors.
Alex Bayus (Baseball)
A.J. is the current home run leader in the Orange Empire Conference and was selected to the OEC Second Team as a freshman. He is a true leader on and off the field by the way he carries himself. He will graduate from Golden West with and AA and a 3.5 GPA. A.J. has accepted a scholarship to Biola University and is currently being pursued by a number of DI schools. As a graduate of Servite high in Anaheim, A.J. spent a lot of time working youth camps at Servite and is looking forward to a career in the military once his education and athletic career comes to end. When asked about A.J., Coach Bert Virreal remarked, “I can’t say enough about this young man it has been a great joy to have coached him.”
