By Colin Capece ’18

Chaminade’s Science Olympiad teams turned in stellar performances at the Yale Undergraduate Science Olympiad Invitational tournament on Saturday, January 21.  There were 48 extremely talented teams competing at this prestigious tournament, but Chaminade’s Team A managed to fight its way to an 11th place finish, four places ahead of where they finished just two years ago at this same competition.  Team B also finished in a respectable 23rd place.  Equally as impressive, both teams finished ahead of their counterparts from crosstown rival Kellenberg.

The Flyers rose at the crack of dawn (5:45 a.m. to be exact) to begin their competition day.  After eating breakfast as a team, they packed onto the team bus to make the 15-minute trip to the Yale University campus.  The first events of the day began at 8:45, but the Flyers refused to be deterred by any weariness.  They competed both intensely and enthusiastically around the campus, and when the team gathered at 4:00 p.m., they headed to the award ceremony filled with confidence.

Members of Team A finished seventh or better in eight different events.  The team’s seniors would lead the way for the Flyers, as Jack Bauer, Justin Knowles, Jake McDermott, and Matthew Mullin all medaled in their events.  Juniors Nick Plante and Daniel Hepworth also turned in strong performances and played a key role in propelling Team A to its outstanding position.

Although an incredibly gifted and intelligent senior class graduated last spring, Teams A and B have performed superbly this competition season and have continued to raise the high bar they set for themselves with last season’s eighth-place finish at the New York State tournament in Syracuse.  

Plante, who is on the council of vice presidents for Chaminade’s Science Olympiad teams, has been very pleased with the team’s efforts so far this season.  “Despite all of the uncertainty at the start of the season, our team has found a way to work together and produce consistently strong results.”  After the fantastic finish at Yale, the junior had nothing but positive things to say about his teammates.  “Even though we were missing a few key members, everyone who competed stepped up to keep our momentum going.  Our team has a lot of potential, and I’m excited to see where we go from here.”  

Teams A and B have their gaze set on another top finish as they prepare for the Nassau West Regional Tournament this Saturday, February 4, at Kellenberg Memorial High School.  It will take another strong effort to once again defeat the Firebirds, this time on their home turf.  They will also face more stiff competition from familiar foes Great Neck South and Syosset.  This group of Flyers has shown a great deal of resilience all season long and will look to carry the momentum they have built into the regional tournament.