National Assessment & Testing has notified the math team at James Clemens High School about its impressive national ranking.

James Clemens placed 21st in the country in the 2012 Fall Startup Event.

“The national test consisted of 100 problems to be solved in 30 minutes. The topics range from algebra all the way to calculus,” team sponsor Shaun Bardell said. Bardell teaches several calculus classes at James Clemens.

During their first four practices this year, the math team focused heavily on the National Assessment competition. “We scored a composite team score of 212, consisting of our highest score in each grade,” Bardell said.

In individual results, freshman Ho-Jung Yang scored 55. “Pratheek Bobba earned a 54, but the cutoff for national placement as a freshman is 56,” Bardell said.

Sophomore Sunny Chenupatti’s score of 77 was fourth best in the nation for that grade. Junior Lakshmi Subramani earned 52, improving about 20 points since 2011. “Kirsten Failing scored 28 and is completely new to math team and our only senior,” Bardell said.

James Clemens Math Team will participate in all five contests with National Assessment & Testing, including the 2012 Team Scramble on Nov. 8 and 2012 Ciphering Time Trials on Dec. 13.

“Coach Shaun Bardell prepared students for the first major competition of the academic year, in which students worked furiously for 30 minutes, racing to answer 100 problems in a variety of mathematical topics,” Tom Clymer said. Clymer is director of academic competitions with National Assessment & Testing.

“With so many questions and so little time, competitors must not only have strong mathematical skills but also be able to quickly decide which problems to solve and which to skip,” Clymer said.

Based in Seattle, Wash., National Assessment & Testing administers challenging mathematics competitions to high schools, who participate by mail. These contests cover various formats, including individual and team tests and varying difficulties, including 15 complex problems worked in one week.

For more information, visit natassessment.com.