Pleasant Valley High School of Bettendorf defeated Dubuque Wahlert High School (Dubuque, IA) 74-44 to capture the 2013 Ames Laboratory/Iowa State University Regional High School Science Bowl on Jan. 26. Pleasant Valley, which lost only one match all day in the morning qualifying round, advances to the Department of Energy’s National Science Bowl, April 25-29 in Washington, D.C.
Wahlert advanced to the championship match of the daylong quiz-bowl-style competition by defeating another team from Dubuque in the semifinals. Wahlert edged Dubuque Senior High School 56-48 in a very close match. Had Senior answered the final 10-point bonus question correctly, it would have advanced to the finals.
The Pleasant Valley team is comprised of juniors Allen Wang, Deepon Sarkar, Vivian Medithi, and Ben Bruster, and sophomore Mary Sears and is coached by Jamie Homb. Competing for Wahlert were Zach DeMoully, Sam LoBianco, Timothy Miller, Adam Bradley and Raj Mehta and coached by Tom Stierman. The Dubuque Senior team was Blaine Tunnell, Justin Yuan, Ben Martin, Megan Valentine and Ryan Polley with coach Wendy Gibbons.
Grinnell High School, in its very first year of competition, finished fourth. A total of 40 teams from across Iowa competed in the Ames Lab/ISU Regional Science Bowl. Besides the top four finishers, the following teams were among the 16 who advanced to the double elimination afternoon session: West Des Moines Valley, Iowa City Regina, Dubuque Hempstead, Cedar Rapids Xavier, Des Moines Central Academy, Boyer Valley (Dunlap), Ames, Waukon, Pella, Home Schools of Eastern Iowa, Williamsburg and Lake Mills.
1st Place - Pleasant Valley Front (l-r) Allen Wang, Vivian Medithi, and Deepon Sarkar; back (l-r) coach Jamie Homb, Ben Bruster, Mary Sears, Ames Laboratory Director Alex King. |
2nd Place - Dubuque Wahlert Front (l-r) Tim Miller, Adam Bradley, Zach DeMoulley; back (l-r) Ames Laboratory Director Alex King, Raj Mehta, Sam LoBianco, and coach Tom Stierman. |
3rd Place - Dubuque Senior Front (l-r) Rayn Polley, Blaine Tunnell, Ben Martin; back (l-r) Ames Laboratory Director Alex King, Justin Yuan, Megan Valentine, coach Wendy Gibbons. |
| Science Bowl 2013 | ||
 (l-r) Timekeeper Jim Anderegg, moderator David Grant, judge Stacey Althaus and scorekeeper Wyatt Hagen run one of the competition rooms. |
 ISU Provost Jonathan Wickert welcomes the participants. |
 Dubuque Hempstead answers a question. |
 Central Academy coach Scott Schoneberg (left) and Ames Lab Director Alex King show off their Einstein neckties. |
 The little brother of a Pleasant Valley player tries on his brother's Science Bowl T-shirt. |
 Dubuque Senior captain Blaine Tunnell dejected watches the championship match after his team lost on the final question to cross-town rival Dubuque Wahlert to finish in third. |
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 First-year team Grinnell readies for action. The team finished fourth overall. |
 Volunteers (l-r) Samantha Lodge, Emerald Wilson, Diane Bassham in one of the Pearson Hall rooms. |
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(Above) Dubuque Wahlert coach Tom Stierman and his wife watch nervously as the team competes in the championship match. (left) Dubuque Wahlert's (l-r) Zach DeMoulley, Raj Mehta, Sam LoBianco and Tim Miller ponder a bonus question. |
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 (Above) Pleasant Valley's (l-r) Ben Bruster, Vivian Medithi, Allen Wang and Mary Sears debate the answer to a bonus question while (left) coach Jamie Homb looks on. |
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