(MACC Team members pose with Coach Amanda Dishon)
You may have heard about it, but do you really know what MACC is?
"MACC" stands for the Mountain Academic Competition Conference. This is a group of schools that have voluntarily banded together to allow students the opportunity to test themselves against students from other schools in five categories, which include English, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, and an All-Around category. The conference was formed in 1985 and Pulaski County began competitions began in 1986.
The group is made up of participants from 18 schools forming two Divisions, the Eastern and Western divisions. The Eastern Division includes Eastern Montgomery, Blacksburg, Christiansburg, Floyd County, Giles, Narrows, Radford, Auburn, and Pulaski County. The Western Division includes Galax, Grayson County, Graham, Rural Retreat, Fort Chiswell, George Wythe, Carroll County, and Bland County.
Each team is allowed to host matches throughout the season. To understand how they compete, imagine a mix of the TV shows Jeopardy and Quiz Show, with all of the categories mentioned above. Correct answers are worth five points each. This year, the regular season was a bit more of a return to normal for the teams than the Covid experience they had two years ago.
The Pulaski County High School MACC team is led by Mrs. Amanda Dishon.
The teams compete in nine regular season matches throughout the regular season, with each team getting one bye during that season. In Match 1 against Auburn, the Cougars won two of five events. They won 55-34 in the Science competition and 68-50 in Social Studies. In Match 2, the Cougars fell in all five categories against Blacksburg, but won two out of five against Radford in Match 3. Pulaski County took the Math portion 63-43 and the Social Studies portion 80-38.
In Match 4, the Cougars took two out of five against Narrows, winning the Math portion 60-20 and the Social Studies portion 83-33. Match 5 saw the Cougars win three out of five events, taking the Math portion 70-53, the English portion 35-15, and the Social Studies portion 75-63.
In Match 6, the Cougars took on Christiansburg and won two of the five events, taking the English portion by a score of 60-20 and the Math portion 65-50. In Match 7 the Cougars won three of five events. They won the English portion 65-25, the Math portion 70-25, and the Social Studies portion 75-48. In Match 8 the Cougars won two of five against Floyd County. They won the Math portion 65-45 and the Social Studies portion 90-8.
With the regular season behind them, all of the teams then moved on to their division tournaments. Last season, Pulaski County didn’t have a team in the hunt. This year, three teams advanced to the Eastern Division Tournament, held at Radford High School February 28.
The Social Studies and Math teams each finished second in the regular season rankings for the Eastern Division. The English team finished in sixth place overall in the division. All three of those teams were able to compete at the Division Tournament in Radford.
The Math team cruised through the quarter-final round, but lost a nailbiter to Auburn in the semi-finals. The Social Studies team won both the quarterfinal and semifinal matches, but fell short in the finals. With that second-place finish, the Social Studies team will advance to the Super MACC event March 6 at Virginia Tech.
The Science Team is made up of Senior Kaitlin Ervine and juniors Laken Barnette, Gracie Blankenship, and Maddie Taylor.
The All-Around Team features juniors Victoria Cantrell, Cole Bishop, Emily Phillips, Gracie Blankenship, Laken Barnett, and Maddie Taylor.
The Math Team contains seniors Aaron Bennett and Clark Mount, juniors Emily Phillips and Thomas Johnson, and freshman Austin Higgs.
The English Team is made up of junior Jadyn Carroll and freshmen Ria Eubanks, Cassidy Jessie, and Heather Holman.
The Social Studies Team, which will compete in the Super MACC Tournament, consists of juniors Victoria Cantrell, Austin Sink, Kaleigh Brein, and Cole Bishop, along with sophomores Ethan Easter, Andrew Clark, and Benjamin Linkous.
According to the records on the MACC website, Pulaski County has won a few times between 2000 and 2020. At the Division level, the Cougars won the Social Studies portion in 2016. At the Super MACC level, the Cougars won the All-Around portion in 2007, the Social Studies portion in 2014, and the Math portion in 2001 and 2006.
