By HANNAH STEELE- Once again this year the IHS Quiz Bowl team competed at the annual Mellon Bowl, hosted at the Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. Two teams from IHS, made up of Quiz Bowl students of all levels, participated in the competition.
The “A” team placed 8th out of 24 teams, which was composed of seniors Shreya Bharadwaj, Vince Birch, Bailey Dills, Clara Sherwood, and junior Rachel Okey. Following close behind, the “B” team, made up of seniors Dominic Ciocca, Matthew Conjelko, Jacqueline Sprenger, and sophomore Tyler Pruitt, placed 19th out of 24.
Tyler Pruitt, a sophomore, competed at the Mellon Bowl on the “B” Team. In regard to the tournament, he stated, “It was okay, we had a bad start but we powered through. My team won six out of eleven games, and the other team won seven out of eleven games.”
The IHS Quiz Bowl team is having a very successful season so far. In late October, the group competed at two county competitions at United High School that both resulted in wins by a large margin. If their victories continue, the team will compete at Playoffs in December and hopefully continue on to the National level tournament, which will be held at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis in Georgia from May 25th-27th.
Vince Birch, a senior and the captain of the team, has been an active member of the Quiz Bowl team for four years. “I help to organize all of the practices and generally serve as the spokesman for the team,” he stated.
Being on the Quiz Bowl team is a rewarding experience for the students who participate. “I like expanding my breadth of knowledge. I’ve learned about things that four years ago I never believed I would learn about, especially in fine arts and literature,” Birch expressed.
Jennifer Brice, a senior who has been on the team for two years, will miss the memories she made during Quiz Bowl. “It’s fun because I’m on it [the team] with my friends. Over the summer, we would practice trivia at Vince’s house; it was really laid back and relaxed.”
Good luck to the IHS Quiz Bowl team in all of their future endeavors!
[Photo by Vince Birch]
Photo Caption: “Members of the Quiz Bowl team are happy to be competing at their competition”
