The Annual Literature High School Quiz Bowl Held in Seward-SHS Does Well

September 26, 2023

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The annual Literature High School Quiz Bowl was held in Seward, at the Seward Civic Center, with 39 High School Quiz Bowl teams competing in a tournament competition with a Literature Focus on Wednesday, September 20, 2023.  This annual event in held in conjunction with the Concordia University –Seward Plum Creek Literacy Festival, and offered as a high school event opportunity. Each round offered 40 toss up and 40 bonus questions based on Literature, Grammar and Journalism.

The day featured high school teams in a knowledge quiz bowl contest, with a round robin contest in the morning-where each team played a minimum of three rounds and then participated in a single elimination tourney in the afternoon-with the schools divided into three divisions.  The event was sponsored by the Nebraska English Language Arts Council (NELAC)-the state’s Nebraska English Teachers Association and an affiliate of National Council Teachers of English (NCTE). 

The SHS Lit Quiz Bowl team was composed of Mariya Conrner, Abby Moore, Sjoen Muck, Kretyn Roth, Ben Nottingham and their coach Melissa Pohl.  The team did well in the round robin play in the morning, and was placed 2^nd in the seed, going into the afternoon single elimination but got tripped up in the afternoon play,

Each SHS team played three rounds in the morning Round Robin practice rounds and then they were seeded in the single elimination tourney in the afternoon. They were seeded for the afternoon tourney, based on points generated and wins/losses in the morning Round Robin.

The winners in the tourney included…Large School –First Place-Elkhorn South Team A - coached by Abby Cleary, Second Place was won by Gretna High Team A -Coached by Rich Arch, Third Place was won by Norris Team A-Coached by Becca Pair and Fourth Place went to Elkhorn North Team A-Coached by Melissa Peterson. Medium Schools –First Place-Central City Team A -Coached by Brandon Wright, and Second Place-Central City Team B-Coached by Brandon Wright, Third Place was awarded to West Point-Coached by Nancy Guenther and Fourth Place went to Centennial Team A of Utica-Coached by Cassa Easter.   Small Schools –First Place-Nebraska Lutheran High at Waco coached by Hannah Zabel and Second Place was won by Heartland Team A of Henderson - coached by Heidi Widick, Third Place went to Howells Dodge Team A-Coached by Traci Sindelar, and Fourth Place was awarded to Osceola Team A –Coached by Kim Baloun. 

Readers/judges for the event were Jenni Erhart of Osceola, Kathy Wilcox of Crete, Deb Sloup, Nancy Schulz and Dana Nottingham of Seward, Nancy Meyer of Geneva. The timers and score keepers were filled by coaches and students in attendance.

Riley Nuttleman served as the Quiz Master and worked with Clark Kolterman, the NELAC Project Chairman. A complimentary pizza lunch was served to all the judges, readers, volunteer staff and coaches, coordinated by Melissa Pohl for NELAC.

Trophies and individual medals were awarded to the First Place teams in each division, Small, Medium and Large-sponsored by NELAC.  The Second Place team won a trophy and there was a consolation round for Third and Fourth Place awarded at the event.

Schools represented at the Lit Quiz Bowl this year included Seward, Central City, Elkhorn High, Elkhorn North, Elkhorn South, Shelby/Rising City, Henderson Heartland, Norris, Cross County at Stromsburg,