ARCHBOLD WEATHER

Threepeat For The Nerd Herd


Members of the Nerd Herd, the Pettisville High School Academic Quiz Team, won the Fulton-Henry County High School Quiz Tournament for the third straight year, Tuesday, Jan. 28. Front row, from left: Elise Hartzler, Madison Beck, Elise Hoylman, Quinn Wyse, Madeline Shumaker, Kate Roth, Renee Hoylman, Kenzi Rivera. Second row: Sam Myers, Lyla Heising, Elisabeth Rochefort, Pete Rupp, Dylan Rash, Madison Thompson, Hunter Linton, Rylee Beltz. Third row: Kelly Miller, Lauren Moore, Austin Rearick, Heath Waidelich, Levi Myers, Griffin Eash, Dalton Myers, Trine Scherer, Rebecca Dorosz, coach. Fourth row: Micah Yoder, Dominic Heising, Meshary Aquino, Jake King, Matt Rupp, Luke Young, Aaron Rupp, Mayzie Clark, Joel Flory.– courtesy photo

Members of the Nerd Herd, the Pettisville High School Academic Quiz Team, won the Fulton-Henry County High School Quiz Tournament for the third straight year, Tuesday, Jan. 28. Front row, from left: Elise Hartzler, Madison Beck, Elise Hoylman, Quinn Wyse, Madeline Shumaker, Kate Roth, Renee Hoylman, Kenzi Rivera. Second row: Sam Myers, Lyla Heising, Elisabeth Rochefort, Pete Rupp, Dylan Rash, Madison Thompson, Hunter Linton, Rylee Beltz. Third row: Kelly Miller, Lauren Moore, Austin Rearick, Heath Waidelich, Levi Myers, Griffin Eash, Dalton Myers, Trine Scherer, Rebecca Dorosz, coach. Fourth row: Micah Yoder, Dominic Heising, Meshary Aquino, Jake King, Matt Rupp, Luke Young, Aaron Rupp, Mayzie Clark, Joel Flory.– courtesy photo

The Pettisville High School academic quiz team– also known as the “Nerd Herd”– went undefeated and scored an unusual 60 points in the final match of the Fulton-Henry County High School Quiz Tournament, Tuesday, Jan. 28.

Hosted by the Northwest Ohio Educational Service Center, the tournament featured 100 students from eight schools.

It was a “threepeat” for Pettisville– the third straight year the Nerd Herd was the tournament champion.

In an email message to this newspaper, Rebecca Dorosz, Nerd Herd coach, said the final match was against Wauseon, who came up through the loser’s bracket in the double-elimination event.

“In this finals match, we won 60-23,” she said. “A 60-point win is especially notable, as both Wauseon’s coach and I agreed that it is the first time we have been present for a 60-point win in this current format.

“I cannot speak for other schools, but it is the most points scored by a Pettisville team ever in this format.

“I was curious after the match and pulled Pettisville’s records for the last five years. I told the kids that I would look for our highest point totals.

“In 2015-16, our highest total was 42. In 2016-17, it was 46; in 2017-18 it was 52; in 2017-18 it was 53; and in 2019-20 it is now 60.

“The quizzers are especially proud of this increase, as it shows how hard they are working and studying to improve.

“Luke Young was the high scorer with 52 points. Heath Waidelich finished with 32, Levi Myers with 30, and Aaron Rupp with 20.”

Season

We have had a very successful season thus far,” Dorosz said.

“While we started the season with some tangible goals like qualifying for nationals, our biggest goal was just to study really hard to see where that could take us.

“The quizzers are learning that this additional study time can pay off tremendously!

“I think we are gaining a lot of confidence and are less ‘shaken’ by tight matches or questions we aren’t sure about.”

So far in the 2019-20 quiz season, Dorosz said the team:

•Qualified for the National Academic Quiz Tournaments (NAQT) Small School National Tournament in November, finishing fifth out of 36 schools. Was recognized as the top finishing small public school.

•Finished undefeated at the Fulton County tournament in December.

•Finished Toledo Area League play Jan. 25-26. The varsity and JV teams tied for second place out of 24 schools; Maumee Valley Country Day won both. Pettisville tied with St. Francis, making it the top-finishing public school. It was Pettisville’s highest finish in the league.

•Currently in NBAL (Northern Buckeye Academic League) action, the Nerd Herd is 6-0.

Pettisville has several tournaments on the horizon.

The Nerd Herd will travel to Solon High School in February, host a tournament in March, compete in the NBAL tournament in March, and has now qualified for regionals.

“Obviously our sights are set on the Small School National tournament held in April,” Dorosz said.

Working Hard

“This team is working so hard,” she said.

“I have several quizzers who spend lunch periods and study halls studying every single day.”

Recently, the television quiz show “Jeopardy!” hosted the GOAT (Greatest of All Time) tournament, bringing back its top players.

“We’ve drawn inspiration from Ken Jennings (longest winning streak in show history), as he released a video explaining why students should participate in quiz bowl,” Dorosz said.

“In addition to finding a competitive outlet, building team dynamics, and exercising our brains, (Jennings) speaks to the information that you learn in quiz bowl that is part of preserving our culture.

“By studying this information, we become more interesting people, able to communicate with others from all disciplines. This idea has really inspired our own studying and practicing.

“While I have a few students who have risen as “starters” and have high hopes for the rest of their season, I’m most proud of the culture created among the entire quiz team.

“While I can’t play everyone, practice attendance is typically around 25 students.

“Attendance at tournaments is also very high, even though many students know they will not have an opportunity to play.

“I respect this dedication so much, and I’m so thankful to work with students who are focused on the big picture.”