The Academic Decathlon team at Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy placed first in Div. 2 for the second consecutive year in the private school regional competition held Jan. 29 and Feb. 5 at Bishop Alemany High School in Mission Hills. The team raked in 34 medals during the two-day event.

Third-year decathlete Mimi Spindle performed at an all-time high, earning 11 out of 12 possible medals, including gold medals in art, economics, essay, interview, language and literature, and social sciences, while Rachel Saad was named the second-highest scoring decathlete in Div. 2.

Coach Mario Pariante chaperoned the team on a trip to New York City over Thanksgiving to broaden the girls’ studies of The Great Depression, the theme for this year’s competition.

“The team really rose to the occasion; I’m extremely proud of all of them,” said Pariante.

FSHA fielded the largest squad in the history of the school; decathletes competed in two teams of nine in Div. 2 and Div. 3.

  decathletes, FSHA