The 2014 High School Quiz Bowl season wrapped up on March 25 with first-place victories in both the varsity and junior varsity brackets by Grand County High School’s teams. The competition was held at Carbon High School in Price.

The GCHS “white” varsity team consisting of Nat Smith, Emilia Cubelos, Becca Farnsworth, and Deanna Irvin, lost their first three round-robin matches of the morning, but came back with their next five games and take the championship, beating San Juan White in the finals by a score of 80-60. The Grand White team had lost to San Juan White earlier, in the first game of the morning, 110-50.

In that same varsity bracket, the Grand Red team consisting of Cody Jones, Delaney Manley, and River Murdock, went 4-1 in the round robin and earned a bye in the championship bracket. However, they were eliminated in a close match by Grand White. That semifinal game was decided on the final question, with Grand White escaping with a 60-50 win.

The GCHS red team then came back to defeat San Juan Blue in a 10-question consolation game to take home the third-place trophy. That game was also decided on the final question, which asked which planet was once known as “Phosphorus.” San Juan incorrectly guessed “Mercury,” after which Grand provided the correct response of “Venus.”

In the JV bracket, both GCHS teams made it to the finals, with the Grand White JV team (Savannah Hurley, Annie Heywood, and Keaton Farnsworth) edging out their Grand Red team counterparts (Stacey Andrus, May Whittington, and Sam Dutton) in a game that was also decided on the final question.

The Carbon event was the fourth and final Quiz Bowl tournament of the season for the high school level. Grand High won two of the four varsity tournaments, which were sponsored and conducted by the Southeast Education Service Center in Price.

Another four Quiz Bowl tournaments have also been staged by SESC over the past couple of months for middle-school aged students. Of those competitions, Grand County Middle School won two tournaments and Grand County High’s freshman team won one.

The GCMS team is planning to attend a national tournament in late May and has been raising the necessary funds for the trip, according to GCMS coach Mike Estenson.