Though the final MATHCOUNTS competition was canceled, Powell Middle School mathletes still had a strong season.

The MATHCOUNTS team consisting of Gabe Rose, Cade Queen, Dexter Opps and Dallin Waite won first place at the chapter competition held at Northwest College last month. In the individual competition, Opps placed third, Isabelle Lobingier came in sixth, Waite finished in eighth and Melissa Merritt took ninth place.

A group of Powell mathletes advanced to the state competition in Laramie on March 7. The  MATHCOUNTS team — consisting of Rose, Lobingier, Opps and Waite — placed sixth.

In the individual competition, Waite took sixth place and Opps placed 16th.

The Powell Middle School mathletes’ final competition — the Wolsborn-Drazovich Wyoming State Mathematics Contest — was supposed to take place on March 24 at NWC, but was canceled due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Traditionally, Powell mathletes have done well at the competition, said Dale Estes, MATHCOUNTS coach.

“At the eighth grade level we have won the contest 16 times since 2002,” he said last week.

The seventh grade has a similar record, but Estes said he doesn’t have an accurate accounting of their successes.

The MATHCOUNTS contest consists of five 20-minute tests. Each test contains a variety of 10 questions. Every correct answer earns the mathlete 20 points, an incorrect answer results in a five point deduction, and any questions left unanswered receive a score of zero points. A score of 800 would be a perfect score.

— By Tessa Baker