The Quest for High School Mathletic Glory

Chapter 13: The birth of an interstate rivalry

What is clear as day is that, in the coming days, we clearly see who lives the stress of college applications and who doesn't. Cory and Shane have no worries, Shane works hard in class, but he claimed Tulane was his safety because he applied there under early decision – said early decision means one must attend if admitted. But if McGill was, as Cory claimed, a backup plan for Ivies, without question Marcia or Krista could consider this place as a safety if Cory considered it as such; they are much better than Cory at least from a grades and ACT standpoint. Well, I wouldn't be surprised if Krista had better than 3.6-3.7/31... As for me I only need to cross my fingers and hope that Chicago admits me in early decision! She thinks, while returning to school on the day of the season's second game.

During the resulting team meeting, where they review other d'autres questions from the AMC12 but also single-variable integral calculus questions, there's also an aside about the last game:

"Vontae, you cost us the three points that we were missing for the perfect score against Permian! And you want to enter the Vans Math Contest?" Trent admonishes Vontae.

"But why aim for the perfect game? Sorry for this question, but I didn't take part to the competitions last year, so I have no experience in this mathematical environment" Vontae asks.

"The next opponent will be much more formidable than Permian, we are playing in the highest bracket now, and Permian is in the lowest bracket. Against the four opponents that we will be playing until the playoffs, every point counts"

"But against whom will we play tonight's game?" Krista asks, anxious to know the opponent of the day.

"Walt Whitman. A magnet school in the Greater Washington region, or in the Maryland portion of its northern suburbs to be exact" Trent answers her.

Oh boy, Whitman. If there ever was a worse moment for this name to resurface, it would be in the Math Madness playoffs or in the VMC final... Geneviève rambles while she feels a temptation against which she seems less and less able to resist.

"Whitman? If I am not mistaken, they will seek to avenge us for their defeat at the Square Root of the Answer!" Gen rambles.

"What are you talking about, Gen? Never did you evoke this name, never did anyone in this town ask questions about opponents!" Marcia retorts, while Cory is synchronizing the auditorium's projector with the competition's screen.

"They represented Maryland in this competition, they finished fourteenth in the final, they believe I am the person to defeat if they are to win it all at the Math Madness or the Vans Math Contest!" Gen answers, her face going red. 

"In other words, we went from a band of idiots that can barely do analytical geometry to one of the great mathletic powers for opponents and in a single week? The order risks being tall, Gen, if what you say is true!" Krista warns her teammates.

"If we win today, our three subsequent opponents will all be at this level, and we may very well face one in the playoffs! We'll then know what to expect in the playoffs" Trent warns his mathletes.

Unlike their previous opponents, the Whitman Vikings harbor a very different set of expectations towards this contest. Especially when their only member that took part in the Square Root of the Answer last year speaks before game number 2 of the season. The atmosphere is way more tense than it was at Permian last week; the latter want nothing to do with facing the Venomous Agendas again, even in the VMC! And that's assuming Permian participates at the VMC... while Whitman will seek to avenge this defeat at the final which, in their eyes, is caused by the Venomous Agendas! In a Whitman computer lab, where the team is assembled...

"These Cajuns beat us last year in the Square Root of the Answer national round; we won't lose to these guys again! That one person that caused us to lose is playing tonight!" Zhou screams.