Academic Decathlon team is paving their way to state. They had medalists in several categories at their regional competition, which took place on Jan. 28 and 29.

“We did pretty good at regions and I am definitely looking forward to going to state,” math medalist Dantes Martinez said.

There are 10 total events at the scholastic competition, including an interview and speech portion that every student must compete in.

“Every single person prepares and presents a speech,” Martinez said. “I think my speech went well because I redrafted and memorized this one.”

Each high school that competes in academic decathlon can enter up to nine students. These students are then divided into teams of three based on their cumulative GPA.

“We sit down and take a 50-question test and we take another test until we’re done,” music medalist Chase Demel said.

With each student having to take every test that is administered, the tests can become overwhelming.

According to Demel, it’s a lot more nerve-racking when testing on a subject that you’re comfortable in.

“I feel more nervous on subjects that I’m good at because I feel like I have to do well,” Demel said. “I was kind of nervous taking the music test because music is my strong suit.”

Since AcaDec is primarily a knowledge and aptitude type competition, it is important that competitors practice their skills and keep themselves motivated.

“[Academic Decathlon] is primarily an individual thing,” Demel said. “Reading over the resource guides and doing focus quizzes or reading the cram book the day before a test really helps.”

According to Martinez, Academic Decathlon can be fun but, a student should know what their getting themselves into. It can be a lot of work, and if someone isn’t prepared it can be stressful.

The students in Academic Decathlon are now preparing for their state competition that will take place in San Antonio on Feb. 25 and 26.