Mahjong Tournament winners announced

Mary Anne Rogers November 19, 2012
First-place winner Jessica Wanitshka won an iPad4 with Retina Display, 16 GB, in Stetson’s third annual Mahjong Chemistry Tournament.

Stetson’s Chemistry Department hosted its 3rdAnnual Mahjong Chemistry Tournament Wednesday and Thursday, Nov. 7 and 8.

“This year, with a gift of $1,000 from an anonymous donor,” Chemistry Professor William “Tandy” Grubbs explained, “we were able to purchase some really nice prizes for the top five student tournament finishers.”

The Stetson students who won the top five awards are listed below, along with the prize each winner was awarded:

1st Place:  Jessica Wanitshka (iPad4 with Retina Display, 16 GB); Junior/Biology Major.

2nd Place:  Alexis Patton (iPod-Nano, 16 GB); Sophomore/Biology Major.

3rd Place:  Jessica Anderson (iPod-Nano, 16 GB); Sophomore/Biology Major.

4th Place:  Cherelle Leslie ($75 Stetson Bookstore Gift Certificate); Sophomore/Integrative Health Science.

5th Place:  Colleen O’Kennedy ($75 Stetson Bookstore Gift Certificate);  Sophomore/Integrative Health Science.

“I’ve been amazed at just how BIG the whole Mahjongchem game has become (http://mahjongchem.org),” said Grubbs. “The number of links posted around the world to our website has become too big to count. The game is often cited as one of the best examples of educational gaming,” said Grubbs, who is also sponsor of the tournament.

Chemistry Professor William “Tandy” Grubbs, back row, poses with three of this year’s winners of Stetson’s annual Mahjong Chemistry Tournament. They are (left to right): Alexis Patton, second prize; Jessica Wanitshka, first-place; and Cherelle Leslie, who placed fourth.

For the third year in a row, the competition was held at Stetson. Only Stetson students who are currently enrolled in CHEM141P (General Chemistry I) are allowed to play in the competition. This year there was a pool of 140 students eligible to play in the tournament.

“The game quizzes knowledge specific to introductory chemistry, which is why we link the tournament to this particular class,” explained Grubbs. “Plus, we wanted to prohibit one of our senior chemistry majors coming in as a ringer and potentially killing any sort of competiton that might be possible among our more introductory students.”

Stetson University gratefully acknowledges AT&T Foundation’s charitable gifts in 2009 and 2011 to support the development of the Mahjongchem game and scholarships for chemistry students.