Antony Yang

Battelle STEM Award winner
Antony Yang
Dublin Jerome
Grade-point avg.: 4.67
$2,500
Battelle Institute

Sports played: Soccer (4 years)

Academic highlights: National Merit Finalist; National AP Scholar; national semifinalist in M3 Math Modeling Challenge and National Economics Challenge; scored 1,600 on SAT

Athletic highlights: Special-mention all-league in soccer

College choice: University of Pennsylvania (anticipated major: finance)

Photo location: Inside the stadium at Dublin Jerome

Home front: I live with my parents Dan and Janet, who both work in IT, and with my younger sister, Michelle, who turns 16 in August.

Favorite subject: It has always been math. Maybe I haven’t gone deep enough, but I love how math is completely built around logical reasoning and creating general rules out of specific cases.

Least-favorite subject: I don’t necessarily have a least favorite, but I used to struggle most with English because it felt too abstract. I grew up a STEM kid, so I was used to following laws and absolute logic, but with English, it took me a while to get used to and embrace the creativity involved. Now, it’s one of my favorites.

Prized possession: My glasses. It’s how I see the world, and without them, I’m basically blind. It’s an extension of my health, which I am grateful for every day.

Favorite book: “One Hundred Years of Solitude,” by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. I loved how pretty the writing was; the way the words sounded together really just mesmerized me. This was one of the books that truly made me love English.

Favorite movie: “Avengers: Endgame.” I loved the whole Avengers franchise, and “Endgame” was such a fun finale.

Favorite television show: “Criminal Minds.” I like the formulaic nature of the show — it means I know exactly how much excitement and mystery I’m going to get with every episode. It’s not something that I explicitly love watching, but I watch it the most because I don’t have to pay extremely close attention.

Favorite musician: Quinn XCII. There’s no good reason, I just like the way his songs sound.

Essential apps: Messages. Not being able to shoot over a question to my parents or figure out plans through texts would be brutal. Outside of this, it would probably be YouTube, where there is so much entertainment value.

Favorite home-cooked meal: My grandparents cook these amazing soup dumplings that I’ve loved for as long as I can remember.

My cooking specialty: Eggs. I can basically make every egg dish with my eyes closed.

Favorite restaurant: Honestly, it’s Chipotle. I always go with my friends.

Guilty pleasure: Cookie dough. I can’t control myself around it.

Proudest sports moment: My junior year, we beat New Albany in penalties in the district tournament at their stadium. I got hurt in the first half, and watching underclassmen step up and bring it home was amazing.

Sport I’d like to try someday: I’d like to do an Ironman triathlon. I’m curious to see if I have the mental fortitude to do something as wild as that.

Story behind my uniform number: I’ve worn No. 6 my whole life. My dad says he picked a random number, and I’ve stuck by it ever since. Throughout the years I’ve had quite a few reasons for wearing it. Maybe it was because my favorite soccer player wore 6, or it was the position I play on the field, or it was because 6 is the smallest perfect number. To be honest there is no reason beyond loyalty to what I’ve had for so long.

Favorite athlete: My favorite athlete is and has been Lionel Messi forever. Something about being one of the best players in the world while being so short just makes me like him more.

Inspiration: My parents, grandparents and my girlfriend.

Dream job: I’d love to do a startup and try to change the world.

Place I’d like to travel: Anywhere. But right now, I think I’d like to go to Italy and see all of it, from exploring the picturesque countryside to climbing the Alps, to trying all of the food.

Something most people don’t know about me: I probably would have been a better cross country runner than soccer player, but I picked soccer because it was more fun.

Least-favorite household chore: I hate doing laundry for some reason. I always take too long. Maybe it’s because of how long I have to dedicate to waiting.

Something I can’t get right no matter how hard I try: I can’t shoot a free throw to save my life. I always end up looking like a dolphin. At this point, it’s something I’ve just accepted.

Words to leave by: “It’s not how fast you mow, it’s how well you mow fast.”

By Ray Stein
rstein@dispatch.com