St. Gabriel 7th-Graders Place 1st in Nation in Math Contest

Let there be no argument: They know their math at St. Gabe's. Seventh-graders from St. Gabriel of the Sorrowful Virgin School in Whitehall Borough placed first in the nation during a recent First in Math competition. Playing a computerized version of the popular 24 Game, St. Gabe's seventh-graders put together an average game score that was better than all other schools' seventh-graders'. And as an entire school—combining average scores of sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders—the Gators placed ninth in the country (out of approximately 5,000 schools). "It really was remarkable," said teacher Lois Doerfler, who headed Gabe's seventh- and eighth-grade teams. Representatives of Suntex International came to the Catholic school along Greenridge Drive on Thursday and presented plaques and lanyards to the outstanding Gators students and teachers, including Doerfler, who earned an Exceptional Leadership award. St. Gabe's top five players were Peter Koltas, Bryanna Brown, Katie Stoernell, Jaclyn Lorkovic and top scorer Rebecca Roth, and each of those students was separately recognized. Gabe's entered 142 total students in the competition spread across nine teams. The Gators' best team—Team Baton, whose top five scorers were Arlen Hooks, Trey Luffy, Robbie Miller, Peter Koltas and Jaclyn Lorkovic—was also separately recognized. Join Patch for more community news or join us on Facebook and Twitter.