Yosemite High School wins Academic Decathlon
For The Madera Tribune
The Yosemite High School Academic Decathlon winning team: Top row, from left: Paden Bergdall, Olivia Mattos, Katrina Conklin, Brandon Healey. Middle row: Nikki Johnson, Ella Campbell, Emily Anderson. Bottom row: Brittany Collier, Carole Calderwood (coach), and Kelsey Montalto.
Yosemite High School triumphed for the 22nd time in 23 years Saturday, making them the champions of the 35th Madera County Academic Decathlon.
Yosemite will advance to the state competition March 23-26 with a score of 36,172.90 to compete against the best teams in the state.
Seven schools competed Saturday in this 10-event competition, answering questions on the topic of World War II.
“We are so proud of Yosemite High School and are amazed at the caliber of students we had from every team,” said Dr. Cecilia Massetti, Madera County superintendent of schools.
Madera High School came in second place with Liberty High School placing third. Chawanakee Academy, Chowchilla Union High, Madera South High, and Minarets High Schools also competed in this 10-event competition. This was Minarets’ first year competing.
“We are thrilled to have all of our comprehensive high schools competing this year,” said Massetti. Mariposa County High School also participated in the competition.
Decathlon teams are comprised of up to 25 members each competing in three levels of competition: Honor (A), Scholastic (B) and Varsity (C) students.
Madera South High School won the Super Quiz competition. All students participated in this year’s Super Quiz. The Super Quiz format this year allowed students in each round to discuss the question before making their individual selections.
“The Super Quiz is a great opportunity for parents and community members to see the students compete,” said Massetti. “The decathletes studied hard all year; it was so exciting to be able to cheer them on.”
One hundred twenty-seven medals were handed out at the Awards Ceremony. Chawanakee Academy received a total of 22 medals: 6 bronze, 8 silver and 8 gold. Chowchilla High received 13 medals: 5 bronze, 6 silver and 2 gold. Liberty High was awarded 20 medals: 7 bronze, 4 silver and 9 gold medals. Madera High received 13 medals: 5 bronze, 4 silver and 4 gold. Madera South High received 7 medals: 5 bronze and 2 silver. Minarets High received 7 medals: 3 bronze, 3 silver, 1 gold. Yosemite High was awarded 35 medals: 13 bronze, 12 silver and 10 gold medals.
Caleb Lynch from Chawanakee Academy Charter, was the top scoring decathlete this year, scoring 7,556 points across the 10 events.
The top scoring senior from each school will receive a $100 scholarship. The following students earned the senior honors:
Chawanakee Academy — Joshua Lynch
Chowchilla Union High School — Prabhjot Kaur
Liberty High School — Jennifer Lind
Madera High School — Erendira Olivares-Reyes
Madera South High School — Ashley Giron-Cortez
Minarets High School — Sydney Johnson
Yosemite High School — Brandon Healey
The Yosemite High team members who will attend the state competition, led by coach Carole Calderwood are: Honors Division — Katrina Conklin, Alexia Dahlin, Olivia Mattos; Scholastic Division — Brittany Collier, Brandon Healey, Nikki Johnson; Varsity Division — Emily Anderson, Paden Bergdall, Ella Campbell.
The Madera County Academic Decathlon is funded by donations from local businesses and community members. The Madera County Schools Foundation supports the event.
