Two students from Park Forest Middle School have a chance to compete on ESPN, but it isn’t for football, basketball, or any other sport for that matter.
Aaron Li and Baron Cao earned a place in the Mathcounts national competition in Boston, dominating at the state level to advance.
Li and Cao placed third and fourth respectively in Harrisburg, edging out over 2,000 fellow middle school math experts. Only the top four from each state make it to Boston, meaning State College alone represents half of Pennsylvania’s team.
“It was really exciting and really competitive,” Cao says of the state competition. “It was pretty intense. I don’t want to sound bad, but a lot of people are hoping other people fail so you can make the top.”
With State College’s recent success in Mathcounts, Cao and Li say the town has a target on its back at these competitions.
“Mathcounts has become a tradition at our school,” Cao says. “We weren’t great at the start, but in the past five years, we’ve been the best team in the state in four of those years. It’s like winning the NBA championship four out of five years. That’s something to be proud of.”
As the May 7-10 national championship approaches, the State College members of Pennsylvania’s team are looking forward to what they say is an excellent learning opportunity.
“You get the top 224 brightest minds in the nation competing and you get to see how well you place among those people,” Cao says. “It’s a good experience meeting smart people, learning from them.”
It’s certainly not the usual path for a middle school student to compete on ESPN, but Cao and Li can make it to national television if they reach the top ten in Boston. At that point, an elimination tournament bracket will begin for a shot at the top prize.
Li is the quieter of the two, but he’s undoubtedly proud of his accomplishments in Mathcounts.
“I was inspired by my older brother. His team was the first to win the state championship from Park Forest,” Li says. “He would come over to me and hand me books of math problems and I ended up being really good at it. And now we’re going to nationals.”
While Li isn’t overly optimistic about his chances at the competition, he’s looking forward to having a good time.
“It’s fun,” he says. “You get snacks and you get to meet people and travel.”
Although Li and Cao are realistic about their chances, recognizing they’ll need to put in nearly flawless performances to win, they still have their eyes on the prize.
“Mathcounts gives you trophies and medals and I like trophies and medals,” Cao says. “They might not be the nicest medals, but it’s the meaning behind them that matters.”
In the mean time, the two Park Forest students will continue preparing for the national competition. They’re video-chatting weekly with the other two members of the Pennsylvania team — from Pittsburgh and Philadelphia — to practice for the competition’s group round.
The final round of the 2015 Mathcounts championship will be broadcast on ESPN on May 10. If their success continues, Li and Cao just might appear on your living room television.
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