Marist High School Impresses At Math State Finals

Caption: Members of the Marist math team pose with their trophies following the Illinois Council of Teachers of Mathematics state final at the University of Illinois at Champaign, where the group finished fourth overall and top Catholic school.

The Marist High School math team finished an impressive fourth at the Illinois Council of Teachers of Mathematics state final held on May 2, at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana. Marist also finished for the third straight year as the top Catholic school in Illinois.

The team competed with some of the best private and public high schools in Illinois, and had several top finishes in the contest’s events. The senior pre-calculus team of Ryan Loizzo (Orland Park), Pat Sweeney (Beverly), Simon Rafacz (Oak Lawn), Joe Kezon (Mt. Greenwood), John LaMantia (Mt. Greenwood), and Tim O’Connell (LaGrange) finished in first place. Seniors Kezon and Loizzo finished sixth in the two-person junior-senior division. Marist finished fifth in both Algebra 1 and geometry, and took fourth in Algebra 2. Individually, Sweeney and Kezon finished second and fourth, respectively, in pre-calculus, while Jake Rahn (Oak Lawn) took third in Algebra 1. Among Catholic schools, Marist finished first overall and captured the top spot in Algebra 1, geometry, Algebra 2, pre-calculus, freshman-sophomore two-person and eight-person events, and the junior-senior relay.

To qualify for the ICTM state finals, Marist captured the regional title at a competition in February held at Chicago State University. They also won all three Catholic Math League South meets held during the year, and finished first in the annual Mathematics Teachers Association Contest at Loyola University. The 43 person team practices several days a week after school under the direction of teachers and coaches Jeff Nicholson ’81 and Owen Glennon.

“Every year I am amazed at our young men and women who continually step up with their mathematical skills,” Nicholson said. “Our phenomenal team of seniors will be missed. They have set the bar high for our other levels of students who will surely accept the challenge next year. I could not be more proud.”