WT Quizbowl (@wt_quizbowl) has, so far, had a very successful season. After losing star senior and team captain Jack Chaillet at the end of the previous year, coaches David Hallas and Joshua Andy began the 2016-17 school year with concerns that the team would fail to live up to its former glory. However, thanks to hard work and a lot of studying, the team is performing just fine.

The A Team, consisting of Jacob Dubner, Aidan Place, Nathaniel Hull, and EJ Eppinger, placed second in the first tournament of the year and third in the second, with players ranking in the top ten individually both times. Despite this success, they have so far failed to beat self-proclaimed rivals Alagar Homeschool, a team they had outperformed during the Chaillet Era.

Thanks to strong performances in both of the early tournaments, the A Team has qualified for both the 2017 High School National Championship Tournament in Atlanta (#HallasGoesSouth#DrandyinDixie) and the Small School Nationals in Chicago. They will at least be attending the event in Atlanta, and the team’s official travel coordinator, Dr. Andy, is investigating ways for their budget to fit the Chicago competition as well.

Despite all this glory, the team’s proudest accomplishment of the year so far has been the performances by the non-A teams. For starters, for the first time in WT history, the Quizbowl team has succeeded in fielding a full C Team. Led by Johnny Stern, this team of mostly freshmen has competed at one tournament so far and hopes to continue building their chemistry (as well as their knowledge of other subjects) throughout the rest of the year. Additionally, the B Team, led by Ross Tedder, has played very well at both tournaments and consists of a solid lineup of dedicated players. These two teams ensure that the Quizbowl spirit and tradition will continue long after this year’s seniors have graduated.