“They may be fast, but they’re also smart.After last week’s state cross country championships, it was hard to find a down side to being part of the South Whidbey girls team. After placing sixth as a team in the actual race, the Falcons were invited to stand atop the podium as the state’s academic cross country championship for the second year in a row.Based on an average of the team’s nine varsity-level runners, the championship was well deserved by the Falcons, who put their heads together for a cumulative 3.941 GPA. The team actually did better this year than last, even though the 1998 falcons left little room for improvement. This year’s runners eclipsed that old 3.875 average from 1998 thanks to fine early season grades and to the several Falcons who carry 4.0s.That is the second highest GPA of any team in any sport in any division in the state this year, and it ranks as one of the top seven academic averages ever in state history. Only Castlerock’s boys cross country team has a higher GPA this year at 3.948.Falcon sophomore Kirsten Smethurst said while the team’s GPA represents quite a bit of work, it was not that hard to come out on top academically.“It’s easy when you do your work and pay attention in class,” she said.Contributing their GPAs to the championship were Candice Burt, Elisha Ishii, Kirsten Smethurst, Briony Morrow-Cribbs, Lisa Depender, Megan Kelly, Karen Schwager, Jessie Enell, and Julie Gabelein.”