Nspire Today! Staff Report
The Bluffs Middle School MATHCOUNTS team captured the state championship at the 2026 State MATHCOUNTS competition on Saturday, March 21, at Kiewit Hall on the University of Nebraska – Lincoln campus.
Bluffs Middle School won with 33 points, edging runner-up Millard North Middle School with 32.25 points.
“Our highest team finish prior to Saturday was fourth place. Although none of our students qualified for nationals – only the top four individuals qualify – our students managed to edge a really strong Millard North team that had two students in the top four. I am very excited for the opportunity to coach the nationals team and plan to bring back ideas and resources to help our team next year,” said Shelby Aaberg, coach of the Bluffs Middle School MATHCOUNTS team.
Aaberg added, “Special thanks to Giles Hovseth and Andreana Fertig-Marlow for driving vans and providing supervision on the trip. Also, special thanks to Landen Heine, Harrison Maser, and Jacob Maser for taking some time out of their state DECA trip to walk over to our hotel and offer some words of encouragement.”
2026 Nebraska State MATHCOUNTS Team Results
1st, 33.00, Bluffs Middle School, Scottsbluff
2nd, 32.25, Millard North Middle School, Millard
3rd, Lux Middle School, Lincoln
4th, Elkhorn Valley Middle School, Elkhorn
Bluffs Middle School’s 2026 State MATHCOUNTS Results (out of 65 competitors)
6th, Timothy Winterbottom, 7
8th, James White, 8
9th, Declan Long, 7
11th, William Croft, 8
21st, Benjamin Salinas, 8
36th, Allison Aaberg, 8
53rd, Zack Rogers, 7
