The 12th annual UT Arlington Calculus Bowl ended the same way the 10th and 11th versions of the math competition did - with Flower Mound High School celebrating as champions.
Flower Mound claimed its third straight title and fourth in five years by edging runner-up Highland Park in the final round. The win allowed Flower Mound to break a tie with The Oakridge School of Arlington for most Calculus Bowl wins (3).
This year's Calculus Bowl, held on March 2, brought teams from 22 North Texas high schools to Pickard Hall to compete in answering challenging pre-calculus and calculus questions for points, which were awarded for fastest correct response. The team with the most points in each of six preliminary rounds advanced to the final round. Also advancing to the final round were two "wild-card" teams which were selected at random from the teams placing second in the preliminary rounds.
"It was an exciting competition with lots of very bright students," said Calculus Bowl founder and coordinator Hristo Kojouharov, associate professor of mathematics. "It's good to see students get so excited about math and this is exactly what the event is for."
Flower Mound team members included Ameya Bhat, Adeesh Jain, Sarah Song and Sabrina Thompson, with Flower Mound math teachers Mary Walker Russell Yeatts serving as team coaches.
"We were very excited to win it for the third time in a row, especially with such tough competition and knowing that we had won it the two previous years," Walker said. "However, what impressed Mr. Yeatts and me most was the true team effort of this group of students. It was not a one man/woman show, but rather a group effort and that makes it even more special since they all contributed to the victory."
Highland Park's team included Karim de Vol, Danny Ham, Alexander Levine and Arya McCarthy, with teacher Kristen Rutherford serving as team coach. The second-place showing was Highland Park's best finish in four Calculus Bowl appearances.
"We had a great time. We look forward to competing next year," Rutherford said. "It was very well organized, intense, and a lot of fun."
In the final round, comprised of 40 questions, Flower Mound compiled 23 points to edge Highland Park by a single point. Other schools advancing to the final round were Argyle, Berkner, Birdvville, Hebron, North Hills Preparatory, Richardson, South Grand Prairie and Trimble Tech.
"The final round, especially the finish of it, was very intense, but our kids kept their composure and came through in the end," Walker said. "We look forward to coming back and trying to defend our title next year."
The top two teams received medals and trophies. Many teams came to the |
