Marie Murphy Science Olympiad Team Wins First, Advances to State

On Saturday, February 26, the Marie Murphy School Science Olympiad team celebrated their tenth straight regional victory at New Trier High School’s freshmen campus in Northfield after coming in first place in 12 out of the 23 events.  The team won with a final score of 40 points (10 points ahead of next best team) and only 17 points away from a perfect score of 23.  Marie Murphy School’s junior varsity team also won a decisive victory in their division with a final score of 33, taking first place in 15 out of 23 events.  Each team has 15 students participating in the competitions.  In addition to Mr. Gravagna, Mr. Ogden, Mr. Persino and Ms. Wright, this year’s coaches include five parents:  Dr. Anne Nagle, Dr. Gerri Newmark, Rory Wolfe, Hui-Chen Li and Herng-Jeng Jou.

Varsity team first-place medal winners were:  Anatomy – Sahar Bhai and Lauren Newmark; Awesome Aquifers – Michael Rivkin and Solena Rizzato; Battery Buggy – Jonah Wolfe and David Yan; Dynamic Planet – Michael Rivkin and David Yan; Experimental Design – Rene Chen, Stephanie Chen, and Josh Park; Fossils – Alexander Chen and Clara Yam; Meteorology – Vivian Jou and Solena Rizzato; Ornithology – Rene Chen and Josh Park; Science Crimebusters – Sahar Bhai and Leah Rivkin; Shock Value – Jason Lee and David Yan; Solar System – Josh Park and Stephanie Chen; and Storm the Castle – Alexander Chen and Aiyappa Kodendera.

Varsity team second place medal winners were:  Bottle Rocket – Jason Lee and Vivian Jou; Compute This – Leah Rivkin and David Yan; Ecology – Lauren Newmark and Jonah Wolfe; Junkyard Challenge – Michael Rivkin and Jonah Wolfe; Optics – Alexander Chen and Rene Chen; Road Scholar – Leah Rivkin and Solena Rizzato; and Towers – Jason Lee and Clara Yam.

Varsity team third place medal winners were:  Can’t Judge a Powder – Alexander Chen and Rene Chen; Microbe Mission – Sahar Bhai and Vivian Jou; and Write it Do It – Stephanie Chen and Vivian Jou.
Junior varsity first place medal winners were:  Awesome Aquifers – Katherine Ho and Regina Madanguit; Battery Buggy – Regina Madanguit and Chelsea Ye; Bottle Rocket – Paul Farcasanu and Tony Xu; Ecology – Paul Farcasanu and Andrew Wei; Experimental Design – Jamie Knippen, David Pollak, and Ethan Wirth; Fossils – Danny Belknap and Chelsea Ye; Junkyard Challenge – Danny Belknap and Andrew Wei; Meteorology – Paul Farcasanu and Tony Xu; Microbe Mission – Paul Farcasanu and Chelsea Ye; Optics – Youngjin Kim and Ethan Wirth; Ornithology – Katherine Ho and Jamie Knippen; Road Scholar – Andrew Wei and Ethan Wirth; Science Crimebusters – Carissa Yang and Samantha Yang; Solar System – Katherine Ho and Ethan Wirth; and Storm the Castle – Youngjin Kim and Tony Xu.

Junior varsity second place medal winners were:  Can’t Judge a Powder – Samantha Mori and Samantha Yang; Compute This – Samantha Mori and David Pollak; Disease Detectives – Regina Madanguit and Carissa Yang; Dynamic Planet – Katherine Ho and Chelsea Ye; Shock Value – Danny Belknap and David Pollak; Towers – Regina Madanguit and Samantha Yang; Write It Do It – Jamie Knippen and Regina Madanguit.

The Marie Murphy School Science Olympiad teams will now go on to the state Science Olympiad competitions, which will be held on Saturday, April 16, at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign.

Marie Murphy School, 2921 Illinois Road, Wilmette, is a combination preschool and sixth- through eighth-grade middle school, with a total enrollment of 269 students.  The school is located in Avoca School District #37, which serves students from the communities of Wilmette, Glenview, Northfield, and Winnetka.