By John Brice
Special Contributor
Ron Rosas had been a standout-athlete and integral cog in the journey of one of Notre Dame’s all-time underdog journeys.
A member of the fabled 1992 Notre Dame men’s tennis team that uncorked an unprecedented run through the NCAA Men’s Tennis Championships, from No. 10 seed to the championship match, Rosas had locked in with teammates David DiLucia and Chuck Coleman, both former NCAA All-America selections, as well as Andy Zurcher, Will Forsyth, Mark Schmidt, Chris Wojtalik, the rest of his teammates and fabled coach Bobby Bayliss on the Cinderella journey.
It had been a benchmark in all of Notre Dame athletics, but the tennis-specific success had captured the nation’s attention in the sport – in which no “Northern” team had ever advanced to the title-match with a shot at the national crown.
The journey burnished Notre Dame’s tennis foundation and reputation, but more importantly it forged a lifetime-bond for members of that squad.
So when Rosas in late-December was initially hospitalized in Texas with pneumonia, teammates were concerned but not particularly alarmed.
Rosas, after all, had flourished in life after starring on the tennis courts; married to his wife and best friend, Victoria, and father of four, Rosas had carved an impressive business and philanthropic path in Dallas.
But in the tens of millions of annual diagnosed cases of pneumonia, an alarming number, as the Mayo Clinic notes, result in sepsis – blood poisoning – within those afflicted.
Per the National Institute of Health, “the most common cause of sepsis is community-acquired pneumonia.”
A day after being admitted to that Dallas hospital, Rosas was in the fight of his life.
“It’s crazy, an illness that Ron got pneumonia and within 24 hours, he had to be rushed to the emergency room because it just escalated so fast,” said current Notre Dame men’s tennis head coach and former Irish All-American, Ryan Sachire. “He didn’t feel great but he was doing all right. Then he’s in the E.R. and a couple days after the sepsis developed, it was a significant battle just to save his life.”
Amidst what is for most an unfathomable tragedy, the Notre Dame family – tennis and beyond – has through iron-willed force banded tight as racket strings to aide in has evolved into a lifetime battle for Rosas.
The sepsis developed so acutely, ravaged Rosas’s body so severely, that doctors in Columbus, Ohio, were forced to…