Long Beach City College student-athletes are not only winners on the field (or in the pool in this case), but also in the classroom. The men's swimming and diving team is a shining example as the squad will be honored on Wednesday by the California Community College Athletic Association as a Scholar Team.
The Scholar Team Award is the highest academic team achievement given annually by the CCCAA. All team members must have excelled academically with a total grade point average of 3.0 or higher. The team should have demonstrated better than average accomplishments in intercollegiate athletic competition. Individual and team winners are selected by the CCCAA Awards Committee from nominations made by community colleges throughout California.
The 2014 LBCC men's swimming and diving team compiled a 3.19 GPA to secure the honor. In the pool, the Vikings finished second at the South Coast Conference Championships and qualified nine for the CCCAA State Championships.
"The academic success of all student-athletes is the overall No. 1 goal of the athletic department," said LBCC Dean of Student Affairs and Athletics Connie Sears. "Everyone involved with the department work together to do everything possible to help our student-athletes meet their academic goals. It starts with great aquatics coaches like Chris Oeding and Dave Kasa as well as a team effort put forth by Athletic Coordinator Mary Hegarty, Athletic Counselor Roarke O'Leary, and Director of Athletics Joe Cascio."
The award marks just the second time a LBCC squad has achieved the honor since the program's inception in 1995. The 2011 Men's Volleyball team was the first Viking team to earn the award.
The Celebration of Scholar Athletes Luncheon is set for April 1 at the CCCAA 18th Annual Convention in Ontario.