Fort Couch earns top scores at math competition

Eighth graders Avik Pandey and Seth Pedretti, along with seventh grader Mateo Lin tied for first place among nearly 300 participants.

Additionally, eighth graders Owen Maher and Lyman Thomson tied for second place in the individual math competition.

CalcuSolve is an annual math contest where students compete individually and as part of four-member teams. Participants solve nine math problems—seven individual and two team challenges—within a set time limit. The competition is sponsored by the Allegheny Intermediate Unit.  

Approximately 75 teams of four, representing 35 schools across western Pennsylvania, participated in the team portion of the contest. The Fort Couch team of eighth graders Claire Dietiker, Avik Pandey and Lyman Thomson, along with seventh grader Brayden Wong earned second place in the team competition.

The Upper St. Clair students were coached by Jason O'Roark, the school’s gifted and accelerated math teacher.

“Throughout the year, students practice higher-level math problems in preparation for events like CalcuSolve,” Mr. O’Roark said. “The students had to do well on a school qualifier to earn the opportunity to compete.”