Oct. 14, 2008

The Perry Homes Utah Valley Scholar Athletes for the month of September have been announced as cross country runners Jared Keller and Trisha Wright-Coombs.

"As individuals, Keller and Coombs are great team leaders on and off the field," Utah Valley head coach Scott Houle said. "They're always the first to jump on service projects and help their teammates off the track. On the track, they are two runners that we can always count on to give it their all and do what they need to do to become great collegiate runners."

Keller, a sophomore from Orem, Utah, maintains a cumulative 3.82 GPA and completed the Spring '08 semester with a 3.92 GPA. Keller is also one of this season's team captains.

In addition to excelling in the classroom, Keller was also UVU's top finisher at the BYU Autumn Classic and the Montana State Invitational where he finished and 12th and 10th overall, respectively.

Coombs, a junior from Bountiful, Utah, is a captain of the women's team and currently maintains a 3.73 GPA.

Normally a 10,000-meter runner, Coombs has trained hard to adapt to the shorter cross country race. Her best finish this season was 16th place at the Color Country Invitational in Cedar City, Utah.