Four local middle school students came home from the Montana science fair with first-, second- and third-place grand awards.

The state science fair, held March 18-19 at the University of Montana, featured approximately 426 individual and team exhibits.

Kalispell Middle School student Zoe Wendt received first place for best sixth-grade biological project titled “Nanotech: The Future Of Medicine.” Her project also received a Peterson Award and the Blackfoot Badge of Innovation, which is awarded to a project “that works toward a healthier environmental and a more equitable society.”

Two Kalispell Middle School seventh-graders earned second place — Dyson Linden in the biological category for “In the Pits: Is My Peach Tree Sterile?” and Keanu Ng in the physical category for “Are We Eating and Drinking Our Own Laundry? Investigating Microfiber Pollution Released from Fleece During Domestic Laundering.”

Somers Middle School eighth-grader James Moody’s project “The Effects of Radiation on Plant Growth and Germination,” garnered a third-place award in the biological category.

Reporter Hilary Matheson may be reached at 758-4431 or [email protected].