|

Manti, Gunnison Valley post strong showings at Snow math contest

ByGreg Knight
Adam Jackson and Aaden Donaldson of Gunnison Valley High were among the nine Sanpete County students to take top honors at the recent Snow College Math Contest.
The contest was divided into two levels, with a senior division for students in grades 10 through 12, and a junior division for students in grades seven through nine.

EPHRAIM—Nine Sanpete County students earned recognition for their performance at a statewide mathematics competition at Snow College.

Held Tuesday, the contest featured strong showings from Manti High School and Gunnison Valley High School across multiple divisions, highlighted by a first-place finish from a Manti student and several top-three individual placements.

Manti High School’s Judah Funk led the way in the Grade 9 division, posting a perfect winning score of 100.011111 to claim first place. Teammate Travis Bryner also placed in the top 10, finishing seventh.

The competition is divided into two levels: a senior division for students in grades 10 through 12 and a junior division for students in grades seven through nine. The junior contest comprises a written test, while the senior contest consists of a two-hour written exam featuring particularly challenging problems. The top three winners in each senior division earned scholarships to Snow College.

Snow College math professor Kevin Powell was one of the organizers and proctors of the contest. He said, “It was fun to see them doing math and have a day to be with friends in an activity. They have a good time getting together and solving problems.”

Manti also made its presence felt in Division B, where Hyrum Peterson placed fourth overall. Evelyn Olsen and Caspian Bahlmann followed in fifth and sixth place, respectively, giving the Templars three competitors in the top six. Their performances came in a division dominated by Richfield High School, which swept the top three positions.

Gunnison Valley High School found success in Division A, placing three students in the top eight. Adam Jackson finished second, followed by Aaden Donaldson in third, while Simon Hart added a sixth-place finish to round out the Bulldogs’ top performers.

At the middle school level, Gunnison Valley was represented by Vera Dyreng, who placed sixth in the Grade 7 standings.

Additional regional winners included Beckett Mickelson of Maple Mountain High School, who captured the Division C title with a score of 195. Mason Forsythe of Richfield High School claimed the Division B title with a score of 130, while Jace Owen of Millard High School won Division A with a score of 115.

The contest was established in 1977 by Bart Nelson and Ted Olson, with the college’s math department sponsoring the event since its inception. In 2006, other departments within the college’s Natural Science Division joined the effort, assisting with lunch and organizing departmental tours. The junior division was added in 2007, expanding the competition to include younger students.