Junior scientists earn seventh place

Park team places last in Regionals

Senior+Freja+Olsen+prepares+her+astronomy+project+for+Science+Olympiad.

Emma Kempf

Senior Freja Olsen prepares her astronomy project for Science Olympiad.

Despite earning last place in the Science Olympiad Regional competition, team members said the competition was worth competing in due to positive experiences.

According to club advisor Jenny Magdal, two members earned a top-3 placing.

“We got two that got medals for third place and that was Freja (Olsen) and Aaron (Councilman) in experimental design,” Magdal said. “I can’t remember (if) individuals placed for the rest of it, but overall we scored last in the varsity division.”

Sophomore Cailey Hansen-Mahoney said all of the activities are judged within the competition.

“Basically in Science Olympiad you do a bunch of sciency events and gets scored and your team gets ranked against other teams,” Hansen-Mahoney said. “There’s a bunch of different competitions. Like 15 events and some of them are tests and in some you have to build stuff and you get rated.”

Sophomore Ilsa Olsen said despite the overall placing, the team enjoyed their time at the competition.

“We didn’t do very well. I think we actually got last,” Ilsa Olsen said. “But I think our team definitely has the most fun and we just kind of go at it as a team. We know we’re not going to win but we have lots of fun doing it and we get to hang out.”

Olsen said the competition is also a chance to support other team members.

“The competition brought us together because you get a chance to cheer on your teammates as they go to their own competitions,” Olsen said.

Magdal said the group will just relax for the rest of the year.

“It is (the end). We’ll probably just have some meetings where we just do some fun sciency things but nothing in preparation for something,” Magdal said.

Olsen she enjoyed her time in Science Olympiad for multiple reasons.

“Science Olympiad is very fun. It’s fun to hang out with those people and to research and make things,” Olsen said.“It impacts me because it makes science a lot more fun because you get to do projects and research things that you want to know about. You sign up for (subjects) at the start of the season for things that you are interested not just a curriculum that you have to take to graduate.”