Liberty Scholars Bowl excels in regional contest

MADISON – The Scholars Bowl Team at Liberty Middle School competed with high standards to compile a winning record this season.

Liberty Scholars Bowl won 23 of 28 matches in regional competition held recently. “Congratulations to the Liberty Middle Scholars Bowl Team and coach David Clifton for an outstanding performance in a recent competition at Decatur Middle,” Dr. Ed Nichols, Superintendent of Madison City Schools, said.

Four teams from Liberty entered the contest. The Liberty White Team with Max Causey, Wyatt Pieratt, Shaurya Singh and Joel Yang finished in third place in a demanding group of seventh- and eighth-grade students.

Liberty sixth-graders in the Leo Team paid homage to the school’s mascot. This team with Oliver Baker, Brody Barlow, Malachi Broadway, Levi Jordan, William Kimberl and Colin Krefting claimed first place after winning all eight of its matches. Krefting excelled as the top medalist for answering the most questions.

The Orange Team and the Cubs Team both reached the quarterfinals. Each of these teams won four of their six matches.

Scholars Bowl is a game in which two teams compete head-to-head to answer questions from history, literature, science, fine arts, current events, pop culture, sports and more options. The tournament’s defining feature is its “buzzer system” that lets players interrupt the reading of a question when a player knows the answer and needs to buzz in.

That “buzzer” element adds a dimension of confidence, anticipation and rapid recall to a game about knowing facts. Moderators read toss-up questions, followed by bonuses until time expires. A student buzzes in using a lockout system to answer, without conferring with team members.

However, teams can confer on bonus questions. For toss-ups, students had three seconds to buzz. Teams must answer each bonus question within five seconds.

The following question is an example that students had to answer in Scholar Bowl. (The answer appears at the end of this article.):

This city’s namesake hill and island lie at the mouth of the Ottawa River near the Lachine Rapids. The city is the most-populous French-speaking city in the Western Hemisphere. Lying along the St. Lawrence River, what is most populous city in the province of Quebec?

The National Academic Quiz Tournaments School provides questions in science, technology, engineering, math and history for Scholars Bowl. The Alabama Scholastic Competition Association certifies the competition.

(The answer to the Scholars Bowl question is Montreal.)