Alia and Sol Vigil didn’t have a full-size track to practice on at Coronado High School, but the cousins will both continue their track and field careers in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference at the NCAA Division II level.
Alia Vigil earned a scholarship to Colorado State University-Pueblo and Sol Vigil received a scholarship to New Mexico Highlands University.
“College track will definitely be a challenge that I am excited for,” Sol Vigil said. “I never had the facilities to really train correctly, so I am excited to just focus on running and really training. It is going to be a different adjustment, but I know I will be able to push myself and I am ready to train hard.”
“I anticipate college track being much harder than high school track,” Alia Vigil added. “(But) I will be able to practice on an actual track rather than around the top of the gym.”
The absence of the practice facilities had no effect on the cousins’ performances during their high school careers.
Alia Vigil’s standout moment came during her sophomore season when she won state for the 1A girls 400-meter dash. She also placed second in the 200 and fourth in the 100, for three total medals that year.
“Once she tasted victory in the 400, Alia’s determination never stopped,” Coronado head track coach Jason Binion said. “She continued to work to get back to that again and unfortunately she fell short, but her competitiveness never stopped.”
She went on to finish third in the 400 at state in her junior season and then climbed back up to second place this past state meet in May.
For Sol Vigil, middle-distance was her specialty.
“She’s a strong middle-distance runner,” Binion said. “She could run the quarter if she trained for it, but she just has that beautiful stride for middle-distance.”
Her highest accolades all came at state in 2018, highlighted by the bronze medal she received in the 800 and a fourth-place finish in the 1600.
The event that Sol Vigil never finished strong in was the triple jump. She said her expectations were higher for all her events, but is grateful for the opportunity to keep improving at Highlands.
“I believe that track was the sport that I ended up pursuing past high school because I wasn’t finished with my ability to succeed in the sport,” She said. “After my last meet at state, I knew I could have done better. I knew I could have pushed myself further in my training. I am very fortunate that my journey in track will continue and my coaches at Highlands were able to see that I am still very capable to improve in my events.”
On the hardwood
Whether they had a basketball in their hands or were smacking a volleyball, the Vigils were always the standouts for the Lady Leopards.
“They were really special and dedicated,” former Coronado girls basketball coach David Chavez said. “They always want to be in the gym. It’s rare to find those kids nowadays.”
Their hard work paid off, as Sol Vigil was honored first-team all-district her freshman through senior year for basketball and Alia Vigil received the same recognition her junior and senior seasons.
“That was the sport I put all my effort in growing up,” Sol Vigil said about basketball.
During their five seasons as part of the varsity basketball team, the Vigil cousins helped the Lady Leopards improve their win total four out five years.
The team was 3-21 in their eighth-grade season, then improved to their best record, at 21-8, in 2017-18.
Alia Vigil’s favorite memory came in 2017 when the team defeated Walatowa Charter School twice in four days to claim the District 1-1A championship.
“I will also never forget my junior year of basketball,” she said. “We tied for the district championship with Walatowa so we had to have a playoff game at a neutral court.”
The Lady Leopards won the district championship the last two seasons, defeating the Lady Cougars in each matchup.
On the volleyball court, Alia and Sol Vigil helped guide Coronado to 68 wins over four seasons and four consecutive quarterfinal appearances at Cleveland High School in the state tournament.
Sol Vigil was second on the team in kills in 2017, with 138 and Alia Vigil followed in third, with 113.
Sol Vigil captured first-team all-district in 2016 and 2017, while Alia Vigil made all-academic first-team in the district the same years.
Close quarters
Alia Vigil’s father, Robert Vigil, said the two cousins grew up “about 100 yards away from each other and (are) like sisters.”
They were raised on a family ranch, which provided the two the opportunity to participate together in all activities as children.
“We have done everything together,” Sol Vigil said. “Sports, ranch work and school. Our relationship is very special. We always have each other’s back in everything. Growing up with each other made us better competitors. We pushed and challenged each other, which made us both stronger in the activities we do.”
Now, the two will be living apart from each other for the first time in their lives, but Alia Vigil is fortunate on their respective landing spots.
“I don’t think it will be as hard because we will be (competing) in the same conference,” she said. “But, it will definitely be a change.”
The prospect sounded tougher for Sol Vigil.
“It will be a huge adjustment for us,” she said. “I will still continue to support and push her even though we are not on the (same) team anymore. It will be very different not having Alia by my side, but I was very fortunate we got to share such incredible experiences in high school. We are both very fortunate we get to continue our careers and we couldn’t have done that without each other.”