Representatives from the University of Northern Philippines delivered a strong showing at the 30th Philippine Statistics Quiz (PSQ) Provincial Elimination, capturing two of the top spots during the competition held at the Provincial Capitol on September 29, 2026.
           Asher Clyde Maala emerged as the provincial champion, while Rein Andrei Avero secured third place, marking a strong showing by the UNP delegation. Maala, a first-year Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering student, and Avero, a first-year Bachelor of Science in Geodetic Engineering student, demonstrated their proficiency in statistics to earn spots among the province’s top performers.
Guided by their official coach, Prof. Jerome Mecca, a Physics faculty member of the College of Arts and Sciences, Maala and Avero will represent Ilocos Sur in the upcoming 30th Philippine Statistics Quiz Regional Elimination on October 14, 2026 in La Union.
UNP’s performance in the provincial competition was preceded by a rigorous university-wide selection process conducted by the College of Arts and Sciences on September 24, 2026. The elimination round brought together 19 first-year students representing various academic programs, providing a competitive platform for participants to demonstrate their knowledge and skills in statistics.
Emerging from the university-level competition were three qualifiers who earned the opportunity to represent UNP in the Ilocos Sur Provincial Elimination: Asher Clyde Maala of BSCE 1D, Rein Andrei Avero of BSGE 1A, and Kayla Pescador of Bachelor in Secondary Education major in Science. Their selection set the stage for UNP’s notable performance in the provincial round, where Maala secured the championship and Avero placed third.
Jointly organized by the Philippine Statistics Authority and the Philippine Statistical Association, Inc., the annual Philippine Statistics Quiz challenges first-year college students to demonstrate the statistical knowledge and skills they developed through their secondary education. The competition covers a broad range of topics, including descriptive statistics, counting methods, probability, distributions, sampling techniques, estimation, hypothesis testing, and the application of official statistics.
At the provincial level, the contestants faced three demanding rounds designed to test both their speed and accuracy in solving statistical problems. Each round featured multiple-choice questions prepared by the PSQ Technical Committee, with the third and final round carrying double-point values that played a decisive role in determining the final rankings.
Following their top-three finishes in the provincial competition, Asher Clyde Maala and Rein Andrei Avero are set to advance to the regional elimination. Their performance in the regional competition will determine whether they advance to the 30th PSQ National Finals, scheduled for November 6, 2026, at the Philippine Statistics Authority Headquarters in Quezon City where they could represent Region I among the country’s top statistical quiz contestants.
Article by Jerome Mecca.
