Science Olympiad closed out its season with a fourth consecutive state title Saturday, even as big competitors were added to the division.
The team has been preparing since September, and the hard work paid off, Coach Barbie Hartwell said.
“Honestly, I am so proud of them,” Hartwell said.
The high school teams competed against 12 other schools at Wichita State University during the state tournament.
The team found out there would be some 5A schools in the small school division this year, which raised some concerns and stress. After a couple of events didn’t go as expected, Hartwell was worried but ultimately the team earned it.
The team has competed each month since November – making for one of the longest seasons of all activities – and the team really buckled down this year, Hartwell said.
There were 15 participants for the high school with five alternates. Almost all the events, 18 out of 23, placed in either first, second or third, she said.
“I couldn’t be more proud of these guys,” Hartwell said. “We went in knowing that we were probably gonna have the toughest battle that we have faced to place first again.”
Seniors Ryleigh Hartwell and Justin Shoemaker have been on the team for all of high school and felt like one last state title would be the perfect way to close out their high school careers.
Ryleigh, a team co-president, has been participating since sixth grade, so the end is extra bittersweet, she said.
She was nervous with the new teams entering their division, but overall proud of the final result.
The whole day was stressful, especially with a few unplanned mishaps with events, but she’s proud of her and the team’s work, she said.
“I wasn’t sure if we’d get it, but we pulled it out,” Ryleigh said. “I was very happy.”
For one of her events, she had to launch a ping pong ball to land in a specific spot. She placed second overall in that event.
Although it’s her last time competing with the Science Olympiad team, she knows it’s not the end of her time helping the team out – especially since her mom’s the coach, she said. She said she knows she’ll do similar things at KU in the fall, so it’s not the end.
Shoemaker, another co-president, is proud he got to be a part of leading the team to a four-peat.
“It feels amazing,” he said. “I can confidently say that we’re the only people in Eudora history to accomplish something like this.”
Each year, he’s questioned, ‘Well, can we really do that again?’ he said, and each year they can. This year, he agreed it was more of a concern than any with the new competition to go against.
He said state was one of his favorite memories of his high school career.
It’s a proud moment, especially as a co-president, to have a bigger role in leadership with the team, he said.
He’s competed in experimental design, an event where you have to plan and implement an experiment with the full scientific process, for seven years straight and this year he got first place.
As he closes out his time on the team, he hopes everyone will take a chance on joining or supporting the team.
“The community is learning more and more about it every year that we keep taking home state titles,” he said. “It’s just an amazing place to learn and grow as a person academically.”
Junior Nathan Steinlage has also been on the team since sixth grade. Now he’s got his own three-peat, with hopes of joining the four-peat club next year.
There are challenges with everyone participating in multiple events, but it’s always important to pick yourself back up and not let it impact the rest of the day, he said. He said the team successfully bounced back again and again.
Although the team will lose strong seniors, he’s confident the remaining members can reach a fifth consecutive title. They leave behind a big legacy for the team’s expectations and possibilities, he said.
“I hope to get it again,” Steinlage said. “I’m just proud of the whole team and hope we can continue this on for next year so I can be a part of the five-peat, and get my own four-peat like the rest of my senior friends are.”
Reach reporter Sara Maloney at [email protected].
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