On Saturday Dec. 1, the Science Olympiad team ventured to the Whiting High Invitational, going up against other teams, some of which have competed at the National level.

“We went to Whiting because we want to place first again in Regionals, and this was an opportunity to get more tests and more experience,” Kathryn Pino (12) said.

In the events announced at the invitational, Lake Central placed second in Anatomy and in MagLev, third in Astronomy and in Designer Genes, as well as fifth in Circuit Lab.

“Whiting was important for Science Olympiad this year, because it was three years since we attended the event. There was a lack of energy about the team this year because of all the veteran members that we lost. [Whiting] helped show all the new members how fun Science Olympiad can be and what it is about, which is learning about science and having a good time,” Michael Plaskett (12) said.

The team has placed first at Regional competition the past two years in a row and has hopes of bringing home another victory when Regionals come around again in February.

“[Whiting] was a benchmark we set for ourselves this year. I thought we did incredibly well considering all the seniors that graduated last year that we lost. I expect us to place first at Regionals, because we’re just that good,” Michael Plaskett (12) said.