L.A.’s Reign in Scholastics Appears Over : State contests: A Fresno team may have sealed victory by beating El Camino Real High of Woodland Hills in the Academic Decathlon’s ‘Super Quiz.’

The six-year reign of Los Angeles-area schools as state champions of the Academic Decathlon will probably end today, after favored El Camino Real High of Woodland Hills apparently finished fourth in the crucial “Super Quiz.”

In past years, the winner of the Super Quiz has usually gone on to win the state championship, which will be announced today.

The Academic Decathlon tests students in 10 areas of study in a contest that chooses a state winner to represent California nationally.

According to unofficial results, Roosevelt High School, representing Fresno County, won the Super Quiz with 39 correct answers to 45 questions. This year’s topic for the Super Quiz, the only portion of the contest the public can watch, was the American Indian.

Three teams tied for second with 35 correct answers, including Wilson High School of Hacienda Heights, which represented Los Angeles County. El Camino Real, representing the Los Angeles Unified School district, finished fourth with 33.

“I’m miserable and scared, and I’m going to throw up,” said El Camino Real team member Maki Becker of Woodland Hills, who battled the flu all week.

But Becker and her teammates said they still hope to squeak by the Super Quiz winner to take the championship--a remote possibility. Results of the Super Quiz are unofficial and subject to change until they are announced today, because of the competition’s complex scoring system. The nine members of each team are divided into “A,” “B” and “C” students, and only the top two scorers in each category contribute to the final team score.

The strong showing by Fresno surprised many participants in the contest, held at the Bakersfield College gymnasium. El Camino Real entered the contest as the clear favorite.

“The word when we got here was, we were ‘the team who beat Taft,’ ” said El Camino Real coach Mark Johnson.

Last year the team from Taft High School--also of Woodland Hills--won the local and state championships, then went on to defeat the Texas state champion, Deer Park High School of suburban Houston, for the national championship.

Teams from the Los Angeles Unified School District have won the state championship for the last three years, following three consecutive state championships by Beverly Hills High school, representing Los Angeles County.

John Marshall High School of Silverlake won the state and national competition in 1987. Taft won the state title the following year, but lost in the 1988 national competition to J.J. Pearce High School of Richardson, Tex.

This year’s contest drew 45 teams representing counties throughout the state. Because of its size, Los Angeles County alone also fields a city school district team.

The nine-member El Camino Real team beat 54 other high schools to win the Los Angeles District competition in November.

The California champion will compete in the national championships next month in Des Moines. Winners of that contest are eligible for individual scholarships of up to $5,000.

Taft’s national victory in 1989 brought immediate fame to team members, who received many plaques and commendations, appeared with Johnny Carson on “The Tonight Show,” and met with former President Ronald Reagan and Gov. George Deukmejian.

The prospect of similar rewards for the winners of this year’s competition has been an incentive for the El Camino Real team, Johnson said before Friday’s contest.

“They also feel a lot of pressure, especially because Taft and Marshall have been so successful.”

During the years that Taft and John Marshall were winning laurels, Johnson said, he was learning how much work his team needed to win the Los Angeles District competition. When El Camino Real narrowly lost to Taft last year--with a score that would have won the contest in previous years--Johnson said he and his team were disappointed.

The El Camino Real team members have spent an average of 20 hours a week since the fall studying for the competition, Johnson said.

The written portion of the competition on Thursday and Friday tested students in subjects such as chemistry, calculus and American literature, as well as their ability to give speeches and write essays.

The El Camino Real team members are Becker, Jennifer Aaron, Mike Johnson, Min Lee, Jon Lynn, Amir Nashat, Steve Oh, Chris Shellen and Natasha Song.

The statewide competition began in 1979, and the national event was first held in 1982.