First-place team, Milton Somers Middle School. Left to right: Alex Hartline, Alex Smith (also placed first in the target and sprint rounds and second in the countdown round), Bobby Keim, Harshal Jariwala, Coach Heather Johnson, and Coach Jen Craigmile. (Submitted photo)
MECHANICSVILLE, Md. (Feb. 25, 2009)—Nearly 140 students from southern Maryland middle schools tested their computation skills at the 15th annual MATHCOUNTS competition, held at Mechanicsville Elementary School on Saturday, February 7.
During the three-hour competition, the students tackled challenging mathematics problems in a series of exciting rounds. MATHCOUNTS is designed to offer the entertainment level of a sports event and to ignite student interest in the world of numbers.
Second-place team, Esperanza Middle School. Left to right: Matthew Sebacher, Brendan Lessel, Erica Muenzel, Noah Wichrowski (also placed second in the target and sprint rounds), and Coach Craig Modrzejewski. (Submitted photo)
In the team competition, Milton Somers Middle School in Charles County won first place; team members included Harshal Jariwala, Alex Hartline, Bobby Keim, and Alex Smith, coached by Heather Johnson and Jen Craigmile. Esperanza Middle School in St. Mary's County placed second; team members included Matthew Sebacher, Noah Wichrowski, Erica Muenzel, and Brendan Lessel, coached by Craig Modrzejewski. Margaret Brent Middle School in St. Mary's County won third place; team members included Benjamin Dodson, Samuel Askey, Charles Gilbert, and Adam Munshaw, coached by Kevin MacKall.
In the target and sprint rounds, students competed to see who could score highest on individual tests. For these exams, Alex Smith of Milton Somers Middle School placed first and Noah Wichrowski of Esperanza Middle School placed second. In the countdown rounds, Josh Hall of Leonardtown Middle School placed first and Alex Smith of Milton Somers Middle School placed second.
Third-place team, Margaret Brent Middle School. Left to right: Benjamin Dodson, Samuel Askey, Charles Gilbert, Adam Munshaw, and Coach Kevin MacKall. (Submitted photo)
The local MATHCOUNTS competition is sponsored by SMECO and the Calvert, Charles, and St. Mary's county school systems, with the support of the National Society of Professional Engineers. Winners of the Southern Maryland chapter competition will go on to compete in the statewide contest.
State winners will progress to the national competition held at Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resort in Orlando, Florida.