The Whitewater High School Science Olympiad team showed total dominance at the regional Science Olympiad Tournament at Gordon State College, taking 11 first place wins that catapulted them into first place for the tournament championship.
With 23 total events in the competition, the Whitewater team secured just under 50 percent of the first place finishes. Additionally, the team won 30 percent of the second place finishes.
First place team winners include: (Anatomy & Physiology) Maloree Christen and Melanie Wagner; (Boomilever) Cole Hayne and Matthew Middleton; (Codebusters) Melanie Wagner, Isabelle Neckel, Liam Jones; (Fermi Questions) Matthew Castro and Edward Huang; (Forensics) Derrick Buie and Maloree Christen; (Fossils) Derrick Buie and Charles Millson; (Geologic Mapping) Isabelle Neckel; (Mission Possible) Cameron Smith and Matthew Middleton; (Mousetrap Vehicle) Cole Hayne and Cameron Smith; (Protein Modeling) Melanie Wagner, Michael Bowman-Olay; and (Wright Stuff) Addison Moses and Josiah Cruver.
Second place team winners include: (Astronomy) Courtney Wagner and Charles Millson; (Chemistry Lab) Michael Bowman-Olay and Edward Huang; (Designer Genes) Dresden Day and Matthew Castro; (Disease Detectives) Dresden Day and Matthew Castro; (Herpetology) Charles Millson and Courtney Wagner; (Thermodynamics) Michael Bowman-Olay and Edward Huang; and (Wright Stuff) Matthew Middleton and Cole Hayne.
Additionally, Dresden Day and Liam Jones finished third in Water Quality, and fourth place winners are (Chemistry Lab) Ethan Gouhl and Ethan Golovach; (Dynamic Planet) Addison Moses and Ethan Gouhl; (Experimental Design) Ethan Gouhl and Ethan Golovach; (Sounds of Music) Dresden Day and Liam Jones; (Write It Do It) Courtney Wagner and Melanie Wagner.
Science Olympiad competitions are like academic track meets, consisting of a series of 23 team events in each division (Division B is middle school; Division C is high school). Each year, a portion of the events are rotated to reflect the ever-changing nature of genetics, earth science, chemistry, anatomy, physics, geology, mechanical engineering and technology. Teamwork is a required skill in most scientific careers today, and Science Olympiad encourages group learning by designing events that forge alliances.
