MEMPHIS — Moorpark High School took academic gold here Saturday, surpassing every other team in the country in a grueling battery of tests, essays, quizzes, interviews and speeches to win the national Academic Decathlon championship.
Moorpark's fourth national championship further cemented California's dominance in Academic Decathlon -- it's the state's seventh national title in a row, and its 16th since the competition began in 1982.
When their school's name was announced, senior Zyed Ismailjee sobbed uncontrollably, Coach Larry Jones leaped onto a chair and junior Scott Buchanan hoisted senior Kris Sankaran into the air.
"There is joy, there is happiness, and there is winning the Academic Decathlon," said Ismailjee, 17.
"It was a long road," added team captain Neil Paik, a senior. "It was worth it."
The nine-member team has focused on the Academic Decathlon for the entire school year, meeting after school, on weekends and during school vacations to study the subjects covered in the competition, including math, economics, science, literature and music.
"The kids have worked so hard," said Moorpark Principal Kirk Miyashiro. "They really do deserve it."
The students represent a mix of backgrounds, ethnicities and academic levels. Decathlon teams are required to have three members with A-grade-point averages, known as "honors," three with B averages, known as "scholastic," and three with a GPA of C or below, known as "varsity." For the last category, Jones combed school records to find students with demonstrated smarts on standardized tests and lackluster grades.
Senior Sarah Thiele, 17, was among his finds. Initially reluctant to join the team because of the level of commitment required, she now says it was among the most fulfilling experiences she has ever had.
In competition, the lowest score in each level is dropped. When hers was eliminated at the state competition in March, Thiele redoubled her effort.
"All of my hard work paid off," she said.
On Saturday, she won a $1,000 scholarship for earning the most points of any varsity player in the competition. Seniors Michael Fantauzzo, 18, and Sankaran, 17, also won $1,000 scholarships for earning the most points in their categories. Junior Danielle Hagglund, 17, won $750 and Paik, 17, won $500 in scholarships.
The team's prowess was clearly on display at the awards banquet Saturday, when the students collected 30 gold, silver and bronze medals in individual events.
