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Home » Instructional Support Services » Student Programs » Scholastic Challenge

Scholastic Challenge - Coser 506.002

Save the date:

Saturday, February 2, 2013


The annual Scholastic Challenge Competition was held Feb. 4 at Portville Central School. The event was sponsored by Cattaraugus-Allegany BOCES. A total of 31 teams competed in the Junior Division (grades 7-9) and Senior Division (grades 9-12).

ABOVE: Cuba-Rushford's junior team finished in 2nd.

Scholastic Challenge is a fast-paced contest that pits school against school, in an exciting tournament that tests their knowledge of academic trivia. Teams of three students measure their ability to recall details from a wide variety of topics.

ABOVE: Pioneer's 1st place junior team.

Ten school districts participated in the double-elimination contest this year. The teams represented their schools well, combining an impressive display of intelligence with comraderie, graciousness and good sportsmanship that was admirable.

Competitors and coaches represented the following school districts:

      Ellicottville Central – 4 teams coached by Ann Chamberlain
      Fillmore Central – 5 teams coached by Deb Woltag
      Friendship Central – 1 team coached by Wade Pearsall
      Genesee Valley – 2 teams coached by Theo Bullock
      Olean – 1 team coached by Carolyn Shields
      Pioneer Central - 4 teams coached by Sarah Wood
      Portville Central - 4 teams coached by Gene Rogers & Margaret Seib
      Wellsville Central - 2 teams coached by Diane Willard
      West Valley Central – 4 teams coached by Ryan Keem

ABOVE: The action is hot & heavy in the senior division finals.

The final matches were held on stage in the Portville auditorium. This year the finalists were challenged to answer questions on current events and local facts. The first and second place teams in each division were presented with plaques to recognize their achievements. All four of the finalist teams have earned the honor of being invited to the 2012 National Academic Championship.

Winning teams were:

1st place Junior Division: Pioneer Fantastic 4: Ryan Drzewiecki, Austin Morgan, Trevor Fisher

2nd place Junior Division: Cuba-Rushford Blue: Robert Litchner, Rachel Webb, Ashley Law, Mo Morris

1st place Senior Division: Cuba-Rushford Blue (only undefeated team): Savannah Wallace, Ryan Webb, Mike Albert

2nd place Senior Division: Wellsville Factoids: Emily Gilfert, Kay Broughton, Emma Wilson, Dan Rice

ABOVE: Cuba-Rushford's team won the senior division.

This event requires a large number of volunteers to make the day run smoothly. A sincere thanks to everyone who gave their time and experience to provide a fun and educational day for the students in our area. Scholastic Challenge could not happen without their help! Congratulations to all the teams and their proud coaches on a job well done. We look forward to seeing everyone back next year!