Merit Scholarship Semifinalists Include 57 South Bay Seniors

The names of 57 South Bay high school seniors qualifying as semifinalists in the 1989 Merit Scholarship Competition have been announced by the National Merit Scholarship Corp. They are among more than 15,000 seniors across the country who have qualified.

The semifinalists entered the 1989 competition for the 6,000 Merit Scholarships, worth about $23 million, by taking a qualifying test in 1987, when they were juniors. The South Bay students are among the top scorers in the state. The names of those who qualify as finalists will be announced next spring.

The semifinalists and their communities are:

Harbor City: Cindy K. Harnett, Yoon S. Kim, Betty A. Tzeng.

Westchester: Elizabeth I. Towner.

Manhattan Beach: Ryan H. Kresser, Lena M. Mortensen.

Palos Verdes Estates: Michael A. Berta, Judith H. Kuo, Jamie S. Resin, Karl K. Tokita, Hans Tung, Anton Van Dellen, Monica J. Vazirani, Susan S. Yeh.

Palos Verdes Peninsula: Allison E. Achauer, Kenneth E. Chaney, Peter M. Cho, Dante G. Corricello, Geoffrey T. Gates, Eric E. Gorman, David A. Herne, Tanqa F. Mead, Susan E. Merel, Christopher A. Patz, Lisa J. Sedano, Christina S. Yi.

Rancho Palos Verdes: Allen H. Ba, Bynner R. Drake, Gary F. Stolz.

Redondo Beach: Eric L. Conzen.

Rolling Hills Estates: Daniel J. Block, Perry S. Chen, Laura A. Clavadetscher, Jon E. Coward, Caroline E. Deppe, Alex S. Fukunaga, Joseph R. Ganahl, John C. Hsieh, Scott C. Hsu, Christopher J. Long, Adam M. McCoy, Stephanie A. Silman, Carlin J. Vieri, Regina R. Wong.

Torrance: Jeff M. Forst, Margaret E. Kinetz, Angela M. Yamauchi, Polwin C. Chan, Sara L. Dyer, Bert A. Vandenberg, Zane D. Williams, Kara L. Hogue, Karen Oda, Michael J. Pivovaroff, Adam J. Baker, Derek C. King, Peter Whang.