CHARLESTON, S.C. - College of Charleston women's cross country had three of its runners selected to the 2009 Southern Conference Academic All-Conference Team. In all, 22 CofC student-athletes from five fall sports were included on this year's all-conference team.
Junior Kristin Jenkins (Cheyenne, Wyo./Cheyenne Central) led the team with a 3.89 grade point average, second-highest among all CofC student-athletes. The Math major competed in all six races for the Cougars and set a personal record at the Charlotte Invitational on Oct. 2 with a time of 20:34.90 in the 5K race. Jenkins earns the award for the second straight year.
Sophomores Alyssa D'Orazio (Haddonfield, N.J./Haddonfield Memorial) and Callen Powers (Chesapeake, Va./Western Branch) were also given academic all-conference status. Both runners are still deciding on a major but boast 3.55 and 3.50 GPAs, respectively.
D'Orazio ran in five races for the Cougars in 2009. She finished 15th at The Citadel Invitational on Sept. 26 with a time of 19:59.16 in the 5K. She also shaved almost 41 seconds off her career-best time at the Charlotte Invitational, setting a new personal record of 19:13.90.
Powers participated in all six races this year and earned an eighth-place finish at The Citadel Invitational. She recorded a personal-best time of 18:54.4 at the Charlotte Invitational on Oct. 2.
The SoCon Academic All-Conference Team is in its seventh year since the conference decided to split the award by season. 2009 marks the highest number of CofC student-athletes that have qualified for the honor since the Southern Conference raised the minimum cumulative grade point average to 3.2.
To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must possess at least a 3.2 cumulative GPA and must have competed in at least one-half of their team's competitions during the fall season. Additionally, the student-athlete must have completed at least two semesters at the institution prior to the fall season.
Alyssa D'Orazio So. 3.55 Undecided
Kristin Jenkins Jr. 3.89 Math
Callen Powers So. 3.50 Undecided