MOORPARK WHIZ KIDS LOOK AHEAD; DECATHLON CHAMPS READY TO COMPETE AT STATE LEVEL.Byline: Sylvia L. Oliande Daily News Staff Writer Energized by winning the Ventura County Academic Decathlon decathlon (dĭkăth`lŏn), in modern Olympic games, a contest for men held over two days and composed of 10 track-and-field events. competition last weekend, members of Moorpark High School's A team said at a campus rally Friday that they're already looking forward to the state competition next month. For the second consecutive year and with a score of 47,938, the school's Academic Decathlon A team swept the Ventura County competition and is getting ready to face off with schools from across California at the state competition next month. The winning team - captain Nick Lange, Arturo Barragan, Alexandra Dove, John Ellis John Ellis may refer to:
``It's been a blast,'' Nick said. ``Since the beginning we've been kind of gearing up toward state, so none of us feel burned out at all. ``The goal now is to be the first non-L.A. school to go to national, which has never happened,'' he added. ``We're hoping that it might (with us), so we're getting ready.'' In addition to a trophy honoring the A team as Ventura County champions, the school earned a plaque for highest overall team, first- and second-place awards in the Super Quiz and first- and second-place team awards. The students also brought home first-place awards for their group scores in all test categories, language and literature, music, essay, interview, art, economics, social science, speech and mathematics. And all 16 team members earned a medal for their individual scores on the tests. The school's neighboring rival, Simi Valley High School Simi Valley High School is a secondary school located in Simi Valley, California which was established in 1920 as the first high school in the valley. It nestles in the Santa Susana Mountains and is adjacent to the San Fernando Valley, part of the city and county of Ventura. , earned the third-place spot in the county competition, behind the Moorpark B team's second-place finish Noun 1. second-place finish - a finish in second place (as in a race) runner-up finish finish - designated event that concludes a contest (especially a race); "excitement grew as the finish neared"; "my horse was several lengths behind at the finish"; "the . ``The kids worked so hard for this,'' Moorpark co-coach Larry Jones Larry Jones is also the real name of Atlanta Braves player Chipper Jones. Walter "Larry" Jones (born September 22, 1942 in Columbus, Ohio) is a retired American basketball player. He played professionally in the NBA and ABA, from 1964 to 1974. said Friday. ``They're giving up their three-day weekend to prepare for the next step. And if El Camino or anyone else beats us, then it means they deserved it. But this team did an excellent job.'' The only disappointment team members said they felt was that the B team would not be joining the the A team at the state competition March 12-14 in Stockton, even as a wild-card participant. State organizers decided last month that no matter how the scores come out, no two teams from one school could participate, leaving the second team out of the race despite earning a high score. The B team - Shanna Gibbs, Shaun Berry, Tiffany Chou, Jennifer Lawrence Jennifer Lawrence (born August 15, 1990, in Louisville, Kentucky) is an American actress and model. She is currently appearing in TBS's comedy The Bill Engvall Show, as Lauren Pearson, Engvall's oldest daughter Lauren. In the past, she has appeared on Cold Case, Medium, and Monk. , James Marlier, Tara Hernandez, C.J. Pomerantz, Jason Sweitzer - earned a combined 44,480 point, as high as many of the teams guaranteed a spot at the state contest in other regions. ``It's a little bit disappointing, obviously,'' Shanna said. ``But I think it was pretty much a consensus that we felt we'd put all this work in, so we weren't going to stop.'' CAPTION(S): 2 Photos PHOTO (1--Color) Valerie Lake, left, and Rebecca Wershba look at one of many plaques their team won. (2--Color in Simi Edition only) Moorpark High School's two Academic Decathlon teams show their many honors on campus Friday. The school's A team will take part in the state competition next month. Michael Owen
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