LHS Student Earns Medal at WYSE State Finals

LEMONT, IL — Lemont High School’s contingent performed well at the 2017 Worldwide Youth in Science & Engineering (WYSE) Academic Challenge State Finals, which were contested on April 20 on the campus of the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. According to a release, head coach Tim Leffler’s squad finished 13th among all teams in Division 1500. Senior Adam Popper earned a medal in the Engineering Graphics category.

LHS said the top six performers in each of seven categories earn medals. Popper posted the fifth-highest score in his competition.

Lemont’s state finals group also included seniors Jon Basiorka, Sarah Hagen, Zach Heatherington, Matas Maleiska, Chris Paulius, Michelle Perini and Jimmy Sliwa; juniors Martynas Juskelis, Alex Paulius and Michael Sullivan; sophomore Matt Gasienica; and freshman Taylor Shimkus.

According to a release, Lemont earned its eighth state finals appearance in 11 years thanks to its performance at the North Central College Sectional. Popper won in Engineering Graphics; Heatherington (Engineering Graphics), Juskelis (Computer Science) and Alex Paulius (Chemistry) were runners-up in their respective categories; and Hagen placed fourth in English.

Lemont captured its regional at the University of St. Francis with wins in six of seven categories. Juskelis was victorious in both Chemistry and Computer Science. Popper won in Engineering Graphics; Chris Paulius and Sullivan tied for first in Physics; and Maleiska and Sliwa won in Biology and Mathematics, respectively.

LHS said Lemont has had as many as three state medalists in one year, doing so at the 2006, 2012 and 2015 WYSE State Finals. Misbah Chagpar ‘16 is Lemont’s top finisher ever in state finals competition, having earned a runner-up medal in Biology in 2015. Juskelis (4th, Computer Science) also was among the medalists that year.

According to a release, the Academic Challenge is a competitive series of tests created and administered by WYSE and offered to high school students in Illinois and Missouri at more than 50 community colleges and universities. Test material is drawn from senior high school and freshman level college curricula, and written by teams of college and university faculty. Subjects include Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Engineering Graphics, English, Mathematics and Physics. Students compete as individuals and as part of a team.

Photo provided by Lemont High School.