Another award has been added to the trophy case: the Math League Regional Championship.

Math teacher Mrs. Lisa Ford said she feels “like a proud mother. Although I don’t think I can take any credit for it. This was the doing of the kids themselves, their interest and enthusiasm, and the teachers. The entire department contributes to this.”

At the beginning of the year, students can choose to sign up for Math League. “(There are) six contests a year, and each contest has six questions. Schools all over the state participate, and we send in the top five scores. That does not have to be the same kids’ scores, it’s whatever your top five (scores) are,” Ford said. Out of the “literally hundreds of kids participating, the top five scores are picked. At the end everything is added up and whoever has the most wins,” Ford said.

Although the team won its region, it was not able to claim the State title. Ford said, “The state is divided into regions. Our region includes (schools from) all of Marion County, all of Hamilton county and a few other areas. Unfortunately, we did not win the State championship, meaning that another region had higher scores, but we did win the region which we are very proud of.”

Besides the team title, sophomore Blake Lowe tied for 12th  place. This means his scores are considered among the best in the entire state.

For the school this title provides an example of the math opportunities offered to students, as well as an example of this school’s intelligent students, Ford said.

Ford can list many reasons Math League is unique, which she hopes students will know. She said, “We are the single (largest) extracurricular activity at Cathedral, we are the biggest Math League in the state in terms of participation, and we are probably the only ones (who) tailgate our competition.”

Any student can participate in next year’s Math League competitions. The first competition, and the tailgate, will take place Oct. 17. Students will be able to sign up with their math teacher next year. Cost of participation is $3.