Math Counts! Just Ask SMECO

Posted for SMECO

Pax II

First place team: Northern Middle School, Calvert County
James P. Dell, President of the Southern Maryland Chapter of the National Society of Professional Engineers with the first place team members Jim Kong, Will Longsworth, Preston Southan, Nathan Hayes, head coach Carole Butler, and coach Lynda Ciardiello.

 The 20th annual regional MATHCOUNTS competition brought together more than 120 students from 17 schools throughout Southern Maryland to test their math skills this year at Theodore G. Davis Middle School in Waldorf earlier this month.

MATHCOUNTS aims to boost student interest in mathematics by making the subject challenging and entertaining, so that students have a foundation for success in science, technology, and engineering.

Middle school students across the country compete in more than 500 regional competitions each year, with winners advancing to state competitions and then to the national competition. MATHCOUNTS is a three-hour event with series of rounds featuring mathematics problems to challenge students one-on-one and as teams. First is the sprint round, a 30-question test that students complete individually.

 

The competitors go next to the target round, where they have four sets of math problems and six minutes to complete each set of two questions. In the team round, foursomes of students answer 10 questions in 20 minutes. The top 12 scorers finish the competition by facing each other in the countdown round, a single-elimination tournament with the fast-paced excitement of a sports event.

In the team competition, Northern Middle School in Calvert County won first place; team members included Nathan Hayes, Jim Kong, Will Longsworth, and Preston Southan, coached by Carole Butler and Lynda Ciardiello. Milton Somers Middle School in Charles County placed second; team members included Michael Gill, Sydney Marohn-Johnson, Elizabeth Saoud, and Ethan Walker, coached by Jennifer Craigmile and Jessica Stiver. Leonardtown Middle School in St. Mary’s County won third place; team members included Rosa Bates, Danielle Gore, Kaitlyn Ng, and Raymart Tuazon, coached by Nicholas Cox. In the individual competition, which is based on combined scores in the target and sprint rounds, Nathan Hayes placed first and Will Longsworth placed second; both attend Northern Middle School in Calvert County. Finishing first in the countdown round was Nathan Hayes, followed by Jim Kong in second, both from Northern Middle School.

Sponsors for the local MATHCOUNTS competition are SMECO and the Calvert, Charles, and St. Mary’s county public schools, with the support of the National Society of Professional Engineers. Members of the Kiwanis of Charles County and the Westlake Key Club, along with SMECO employees and their families, volunteered their time to help score the tests. Winners of the Southern Maryland chapter competition will go on to compete in the statewide contest at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. State winners will progress to the national competition in Orlando, FL.

Other individuals who qualified for state

Names	School
Jacob Polis	John Hanson Middle
Peter Stewart	General Smallwood Middle
Justin Patin	Northern Middle
Thomas Macyko	Cardinal Hickey Academy
David Cannavo	Spring Ridge Middle
Adolf Accad	Theodore Davis Middle
Margaret Holmes	Esperanza Middle
Emme Staats	Esperanza Middle
Josh Grafil	Esperanza Middle
Michael Meade	Theodore Davis Middle
Morgan Lennon	Northern Middle
Amara Gammon	Theodore Davis Middle
Rachel Niswander	Northern Middle

 

2014 Southern Maryland Chapter MATHCOUNTS

Top 4 Teams Qualifying for State

 

Place	School	Student’s Name	Coach’s Name
1	Northern Middle School		Carole Butler
		Nathan Hayes
		Jim Kong
		Will Longsworth
		Preston Southan
2	Milton Somers Middle School		Jen Craigmile
		Michael Gill
		Sydney Marohn-Johnson
		Elizabeth Saoud
		Ethan Walker
3	Leonardtown Middle School		Nicholas Cox
		Rosa Bates
		Danielle Gore
		Kaitlyn Ng
		Raymart Tuazon
4	Southern Middle School		Regina Sullivan
		Peyton Fort
		Lauren Nordquist
		Brianna Palumbo
		Josie Smith