Contact: Tammy Lane • First Posted: Monday, March 22, 2010

Elaine Lin of Beaumont Middle School and Winburn’s Valerie Sarge and Kathleen Yang finished first, second and fourth respectively, out of more than 150 participants in the state MATHCOUNTS contest in Louisville.

The top four individuals won full scholarships to the University of Kentucky or the University of Louisville and advance to the national MATHCOUNTS contest in May in Orlando, Fla.

Elaine, Valerie and Kathleen also took first, second and third place in the state’s quick-recall “Countdown Round.”

In the team results, Winburn was runner-up, followed by Beaumont in third and Lexington Traditional Magnet School in fourth place in the March 20 competition.

Among individuals, Matthew Wu of Winburn finished sixth and Eric Xiong of LTMS came in 10^th.

MATHCOUNTS is a nationwide program designed to improve math skills among U.S. middle school students. Students compete individually and as teams in written and fast-paced oral matches designed to stimulate their exposure to a wide range of mathematics. There are four types of competition, including quick-recall rounds with buzzers and problem-solving with pencil and paper.

For more details about the Kentucky program, contact Natalee Feese, the mathematics K-12 coordinator for Fayette County Public Schools.