DESERT, HART BIG WINNERS AT MATH DAY EDWARDS SCHOOL SCORES HIGHEST IN ITS CATEGORY.

Byline: Peggy Hager Staff Writer

LANCASTER - Desert High School at Edwards Air Force Base and Hart High School of Newhall won Antelope Valley College's 24th Annual Math Field Day.

Hart High's three-person team won Friday among large schools and Desert won among small schools, its 12th consecutive win in the small-school category. For the third year in a row, the top individual scorer with 87 points was Hart High senior William Kuykendall.

``You never know. You just go in and take the test, do your best and see what happens,'' said Kuykendall, who is looking into attending University of California at Berkeley or Harvey Mudd College.

This year, the questions seemed a little easier, said Kuykendall, who besides attending high school is studying linear algebra at College of the Canyons.

``It's really basic-level math. It's just strictly trigonometry so there's nothing I've learned that I can add to that,'' said Kuykendall. ``I guess maybe I figured just by doing a lot of math when you're young, we probably all figured out how to attack certain problems.''

Students from 18 public and private high schools competed for individual and team awards in timed math tests, answering questions devised by college math instructors. The college has sponsored the event since 1981 to raise teens' interest in math.

Hart High's team members - Kuykendall, Anna Hiszpanski and Seth Winger - scored 196 out of a possible 300 points. Desert High School's junior and senior team members - Stefan Bock, Rebecca Hicks and Ronalynn Ramos - scored 179 points.

Placing second in the large-school competition was Highland High School, whose team members - Miguel Christophy, Jeff Susca and Joshua May - scored 189.

Master of ceremonies Chuck Ferarri drew laughter at the awards ceremony when he announced the Highland students weren't there to accept their trophy because they had to leave early to take a calculus test.

Finishing second in the junior-senior small-school competition was Paraclete High, whose team members - Nicolaus Faino, Lia Bonamassa and Rose Marie Holcomb - scored 127.

Following Kuykendall in the individual top-scoring category was Miguel Christophy of Highland with 78 points, and Bock of Desert high with 69 points.

In the two-person freshman-sophomore competition for large schools, Hart High twin sisters Elizabeth and Isabella Tang took first place with a perfect score of 110 points.

``It feels good,'' said Elizabeth and Isabella in unison.

Quartz Hill High School's team of Lauren Ellefson and Eric Zhu took second place with 90 points.

Small-school freshman-sophomore first-place winners were Desert High's Keith Hines and Kaitlyn Kennett, who scored 70 points. Second place went to Pete Knight High School's Samson Truong and Bao Nso with 65 points.

In the junior-senior competition, each member completed 20 questions in areas ranging from algebra to pre-calculus.

The freshman and sophomore teams each answered 22 questions in a ``leap-frog relay'' for a 110-point maximum score. Partners traded papers during the test, allowing each student to finish a partner's work or correct mistakes.

The competition was sponsored by Antelope Valley College and Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co.

Peggy Hager, [phone]

peggy.grimm-hager(at)dailynews.com

SAMPLE QUESTIONS

1. At noon, Ada and Bea begin walking up the stairs of an office building. Ada is faster and moves ahead. At 12:08 Bea switches from walking to riding the elevator. She passes Ada at 12:10, gets out at the top floor at 12:12 and waits 3 minutes for Ada to arrive.

If Bea had walked all the way to the top floor than Ada would have waited how many minutes for Bea? (Ada, Bea and the elevator each climb at a constant rate.)

A) 3 3/4

B) 5

C) 6

D) 7 1/2

E) 9

2. A circular table, more than 48 inches in diameter, rests in a corner of a room, touching both walls. There is a point somewhere on the edge of the table that is 8 inches from one wall and 9 inches from the other wall. What is the radius of the table, in inches?

A) 26

B) 27

C) 28

D) 29

E) 30

Answers: 1: E. 2: D.

CAPTION(S):

3 photos, box

Photo:

(1 -- ran in AV edition only) Small-school math day winners from Desert High School are, from left, Rebecca Hicks, Stefan Bock and Ronalynn Ramos.

(2) ``Leap frog'' winners from Hart High School are Isabella Tang, left, and her twin sister Elizabeth Tang, who had a perfect score.

(3 -- ran in SAC edition only) Antelope Valley College's 25th annual Math Field Day big school winners are, from left, Hart High School students Seth Winger, Anna Hiszpanski and William Kuykendall.

Jeff Goldwater/Staff Photographer

Box:

SAMPLE QUESTIONS (see text)