Math whiz: West Point’s Lily Whitesell undefeated in 7 years of math competitions

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Lily Whitesell with her first-place trophies from every county math tournament from sixth through 12th grades. (contributed)

WEST POINT, Ala. – West Point High School senior Lily Whitesell will graduate next month with a highly unlikely record to her credit: seven consecutive first-place finishes at the Cullman County Math Tournament.  In exams over subjects including sixth- and seventh-grade math, Algebra I, Geometry and Algebra II, as well as the 11th-grade comprehensive and 12th-grade advanced math exams, Whitesell took top honors over every student in her grade level at the county competitions from 2013-2019.

WPHS geometry teacher and math team co-sponsor Lucretia Smith searched tournament records as far back as she could locate, and could not find another Cullman County student with such a record.

Smith said of her star pupil, “Lily Whitesell is a very intelligent, high achieving student.  She sets goals for herself and works diligently to reach them. Placing first at every Cullman County Math Tournament from sixth grade to 12th grade is quite an accomplishment!  She has been a joy to work with, and we are excited to see what she does in the future!”

According to Smith, Whitesell is still considering options for college, but she plans to major in physics with concentrations in math and astronomy, with the goal of becoming an astrophysicist.

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W.C. Mann

craig@cullmantribune.com