Three athletes from the Moorpark College Cross Country team were recognized for their excellence in maintaining their grade point averages along with playing sports.

Clarissa Wentworth, Emily Kelly, and Hayley Moore were all named to the 2011 California Community College Athletic Association Academic All-State Cross Country team. Nominees for this award are given out to athletes who are recommended by their coaches and must have a minimum GPA of 3.2 and a minimum of 24 units accumulated from their first season of competing in sports.

The nominees are picked from all of the community colleges and the top 20 student athletes are chosen for this award. Each player that was nominated put in a total of 12 hours of practice and at least a couple of hours of study time.

“They work really hard training in 100 degree weather and some of these people take 18, 19, or 22 units and get their 3.5 or higher,” said Cross Country Coach Traycie Kephart.