On Saturday, March 7th, the best scientists from around the county came together to compete in the annual Santa Barbara Regional Science Olympiad taking place at the University of California, Santa Barbara. The Science Olympiad is a 23-event competition where high school participants will either take a test, complete a lab, or build something. This is only the second year San Marcos has ever competed in the Science Olympiad, and they are solidifying themselves as a contender in the next few years.

The team was led by seniors Sean Nguyen and Ellen Butler, who each placed first in Robot Tour and Codebusters, respectively. They were also able to medal in at least one other event. Nguyen had this to say on his win, “I knew I could win because last year I got second, and after hearing that I won I was really excited because it was a goal I set for myself and being able to achieve it felt really good.”

With this first-place finish, both Nguyen and Butler have now qualified for the state finals. Another senior,  Anna Holmes, also had a great showing, placing second in rocks and minerals and forensics, and third in water quality.

Advisor for the club, Mrs. Catlin, said, “I am proud of everyone for showing up and turning out, we had way more students participate this year than last year, and were able to make two teams when last year we only had one.”

Science Olympiad Club President Mya Shenoda also said some things about the teams results,

“Our communication improved from last year to this year about what events everyone was doing and where they needed to be. It was really fun that all of the seniors got to do it two years in a row and it was nice doing it all together one more time before we all went our separate ways.”

Overall, they were the fourth school, and both teams placed ahead of DP in the final rankings. Hopefully, the club can gain more traction in the coming years to finally place in the top three and continue beating our rivals.