Middle School Mathletes Excel at MATHCOUNTS Competition
How many permutations of the letters in BANANA exist? What is the sum of the divisors of 2024? How many diagonals can you draw in a dodecahedron?
On Feb. 24, Poly Middle School students competed in MATHCOUNTS, the nation’s oldest and largest team math competition, at the Southern California Edison Education Center in Irwindale. Participating for the first time since 2020, Poly placed sixth out of 16 schools from across Southern California—Poly’s best performance in over a decade.
The core team consisted of Anthony I. ’28, Jerry S. ’28, Ryan K. ’28, and Jeffrey Z. ’30. Anthony I. and Jeffrey Z. individually placed in the top 25% of all contestants, while Ryan K. advanced to the quarterfinals of the Countdown Round, where students race head-to-head to solve problems on stage. Also representing Poly were Finn T. ’28, Narayan N. ’28, Maynard L. ’29, Ashley L. ’30, Colin K. ’30, DJ M. ’30, Evan K. ’30, and Ethan W. ’30.
Coached by Alexandra K. ’24, the newly formed Middle School math team prepared for the competition during after-school sessions attended by two dozen students.
“I was proud of how hard each student worked and how much they improved in just a few months,” said Alexandra K. “In rekindling the program, I wanted to spark enthusiasm for math beyond the school curriculum and forge a lasting community of problem solvers.”
Team Captain Anthony I. said, “I have learned so many different ways to approach a problem, and if it weren't for MATHCOUNTS, I would have never been able to think about problems this way.”
“I learned the importance of working with others as a team while preparing for the team round,” added team member Ryan K.
Many other community members were instrumental to the team’s journey, including parents Yong Liu and Bonnie Wongtrakool, who provided unwavering support and advice; Chloe L. ’27, who helped coach the team; and Desmos, Jane Street, and the Advancement Office. The team looks to multiply their success at upcoming local and national math contests this spring.
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On Feb. 24, Poly Middle School students competed in MATHCOUNTS, the nation’s oldest and largest team math competition, at the Southern California Edison Education Center in Irwindale. Participating for the first time since 2020, Poly placed sixth out of 16 schools from across Southern California—Poly’s best performance in over a decade.
The core team consisted of Anthony I. ’28, Jerry S. ’28, Ryan K. ’28, and Jeffrey Z. ’30. Anthony I. and Jeffrey Z. individually placed in the top 25% of all contestants, while Ryan K. advanced to the quarterfinals of the Countdown Round, where students race head-to-head to solve problems on stage. Also representing Poly were Finn T. ’28, Narayan N. ’28, Maynard L. ’29, Ashley L. ’30, Colin K. ’30, DJ M. ’30, Evan K. ’30, and Ethan W. ’30.
Coached by Alexandra K. ’24, the newly formed Middle School math team prepared for the competition during after-school sessions attended by two dozen students.
“I was proud of how hard each student worked and how much they improved in just a few months,” said Alexandra K. “In rekindling the program, I wanted to spark enthusiasm for math beyond the school curriculum and forge a lasting community of problem solvers.”
Team Captain Anthony I. said, “I have learned so many different ways to approach a problem, and if it weren't for MATHCOUNTS, I would have never been able to think about problems this way.”
“I learned the importance of working with others as a team while preparing for the team round,” added team member Ryan K.
Many other community members were instrumental to the team’s journey, including parents Yong Liu and Bonnie Wongtrakool, who provided unwavering support and advice; Chloe L. ’27, who helped coach the team; and Desmos, Jane Street, and the Advancement Office. The team looks to multiply their success at upcoming local and national math contests this spring.
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