Alhambra High School’s Academic Decathlon team has once again proven itself as a powerhouse, securing the Los Angeles County championship for the second year in a row. With an impressive overall score of 47,430, the team claimed first place overall and first place in the highly competitive Division 1 Super Quiz event.
At this year’s award luncheon, held on February 13 at the Queen Mary in Long Beach, awards and rankings were announced. By the end of the afternoon, the AHS team earned a staggering 74 individual medals, including 41 gold medals, showcasing the exceptional talent and knowledge of its decathletes, who studied and prepared for 10 categories focused on this year’s theme of “Our Changing Climate.” One of the team’s standout performances came in the Speech category, where four students won gold medals, including Cesar Gonzalez, who delivered a flawless speech and earned a perfect score of 1,000.
AHS’s decathletes also dominated in individual scoring. Kevin San was the highest scorer not only in the Honors category but in all of Los Angeles County, earning an impressive 9,485 points. Right behind him was teammate and twin brother Kenneth San, who secured the second-highest overall score in the county with 9,060 points. Meanwhile, Oscar Diaz emerged as the top scorer in the Scholastic division with 7,216 points.
Reflecting on his team’s success, Coach Jose Sanchez expressed immense pride in their achievements. “This team embodies hard work, dedication, and an unwavering commitment to excellence. Winning back-to-back titles is no small feat, and these students have set a standard for future AHS teams to follow. I couldn’t be prouder of each and every one of them.”
The strong showing from Alhambra Unified School District extended to the other two district high schools, as Mark Keppel High School finished in second place with a total score of 46,307 and will join AHS in advancing to the California Academic Decathlon State Finals March 20-23 in Santa Clara. MKHS was also awarded recognition as the Most Improved team, besting their previous year’s score by 18,207 points. Meanwhile, San Gabriel High School’s score of 34,739 earned them 12th place overall and qualified the team for the State’s virtual AcaDec competition on March 8, ensuring that all three AUSD high schools will continue their competitive journey and be represented at the next level.
With their sights now set on a strong showing against statewide competitors, the Alhambra, Mark Keppel, and San Gabriel teams will continue to prepare for the rigorous competition ahead, carrying the pride of their schools and our entire community with them.
