Providence Academy Answers the Question of Who Would Win Quiz Bowl

(December 17^th, 2009) – After 260 grilling questions, it was the eighth grade team from Providence Academy who came out on top, without question.  The team of Lila Anderson from Minnetonka, Brendon Boldt from Plymouth, JP Daughtery from Buffalo, and Rachael Maguire from Hamel recently participated in the 17^th annual Catholic Grade Schools Quiz Bowl held at the University of St. Thomas in the O’Shaughnessy Educational Center.  Rachael Onserio from Maple Grove and Patrick Buehler from Maple Plain were team alternates for this year’s Quiz Bowl.

The event, sponsored by local Catholic High Schools, celebrates students who have applied themselves throughout their elementary school years to develop a connected foundation of knowledge.  Covering a full day, the matches began at 9:00 a.m. and concluded at 3:00 p.m. with 48 Archdiocesan schools participating in rounds of elimination.  Each team gained points by answering 40-50 questions in each series of competition.  The final round was held in the auditorium in front of a crowd of more than 250 people. 

After one of the opening rounds, a Quiz Bowl moderator expressed his belief that the team’s score of 34 questions answered correctly out of a total of 50 asked was possibly a record score for a single round in recent memory.  Of the six rounds, there was only one where the opposing team’s points total as much a fifty percent of Providence’s team score. 

Dr. Bernard Carpenter, Chairman of the History Department, and Mr. Bill Fedock, history teacher, coached the team to victory.  Practices started in October and covered everything from being aggressive on the buzzer to how to make an educated guess.  “This year we focused extensively on lists like knowing the presidents in chronological order, Constitutional Amendments, rivers and lakes, states and capitals, world leaders, etc.” said Mr. Fedock.  “We also focused on literature, math and science topics, government structure, landmark Supreme Court cases, and American history.  Dr. Carpenter and I knew we had a good team this year and that we would be competitive.  We just didn’t know how good they were until the event.  Our students made us proud as they competed well and conducted themselves in a very professional way.”  Dr. Carpenter added, “This is the best Christmas present that I have received in years.  I was also proud that our team remembered to thank the moderator and to shake hands with their opponents at the end of each round.”

“The range of knowledge covered in Quiz Bowl is most impressive” said Dr. Todd Flanders, Headmaster at Providence Academy.  “You witness your team answering question after question and can’t help but marvel at their wealth of facts and information.” 

Parents who watched the competition found the action both gripping and nerve-wracking at the same time.  Mrs. Donna Severson, mother of Rachael Maguire, commented “You hear a question that seems simple to you and think that everyone should know the answer to it.  Then you realize that the familiar event actually occurred in your own youth, which was years before your child was even born.”  Lila Anderson’s mother, Mrs. Mary Anderson, knew her daughter would earn another point when the question turned to naming a particular Dr. Seuss story.  The Lorax is my favorite Dr. Seuss book so I read it to Lila over and over when she was young.  I can’t believe it came up as a question in the final round but she was coincidentally well-prepared for that one.”

Fun and camaraderie continue to be the main elements in Quiz Bowl.  Participants have the opportunity to meet eighth grade peers from all over the Twin Cities.  They have access to information tables where they can learn about high school choices and experience a day on a college campus.  All participants are congratulated for their efforts and receive a complimentary Quiz Bowl T-shirt.

Providence Academy’s eighth grade quiz bowl team won the annual Catholic elementary school competition.

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