California twins get perfect SAT scores

SAN DIEGO (NBC/KNSD) - A set of California twins has something to brag about: a perfect SAT score.

The 17-year-old San Diego High School seniors recently learned they made the exact same score on the college admissions exam, and the rare 2400 is the highest possible score you can get.

Tina and Marie Vachovsky were born together, play piano together and even play tennis together.

And early Thursday morning, they found out that they got perfect scores on the SAT together.

"Actually, I was screaming for a while, and then I went to go find my mom,” said Tina. “And then she started screaming, and then we went to go wake up our dad."

“I thought the house is on fire,” said Ivan Vachovsky, the twins’ father. “I asked, ‘Is the house on fire?’ They said '24,' and then I started yelling, too."

The result was even better for Marie, who scored lower than her sister the first time -- 2170 versus Tina's 2210.

She worried it would look bad on her college applications.

"Before she had a higher score, so it was like, any college I apply to there's going to be a better version of me, because there's someone with a higher SAT score that's almost the same in everything else,” said Marie.

Was it a natural gift? The girls certainly have incredible mental capacity, being good students, very talented painters and musicians.

They said they studied -- but not too much -- lots of vocabulary. But the key, they said, is to understand how the questions are asked and what answer they're pointing to.

"Do lots and lots of practice tests; that's my advice,” said Tina.

“And on the day of the SAT, just be positive,” said Marie.

They both want to go to Stanford because it's a great school, and they love California.

The twins haven't decided on their future careers yet, although their parents are hoping they'll be doctors.