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Quiz kids: KMS students get jump on competition

THE KINGSFORD MIDDLE SCHOOL Quiz Bowl team took fourth in the U.P. Championship tournament and received medals for placing the semi-finals. Team members with their medals, include from left, Sam Bilgreen, Sam Gaucher, Zach Rankin, Peyton Johnson, and Mika Yuhasey, in front. (Linda Lobeck/Daily News photo)

KINGSFORD — It helps to start early to prepare for the region’s popular Quiz Bowl competition.

For more than a quarter-century, Kingsford Middle School students have been invited to be part of the Breitung School District’s Quiz Bowl teams.

“This means that all students will participate in the practices and they are rotated in so everyone gets to use the buzzers and answering questions,” Coach Colleen Driscoll said.

The questions span a wide range of subject areas: history, religion, math, science, geography, literature and current events.

Since Driscoll began coaching the middle school Quiz Bowl teams eight years ago, they have made it to the semi-finals several times, including this year, and won the U.P. championships twice.

Practices are twice a week after school, starting in September. The first two months focus on working on toss-ups, getting used to the buzzers, and basic rules about the Quiz Bowl, Driscoll said.

By November, the focus is on team play as they prepare for the tournament in December. At the middle school level, it will be the only chance they get to compete, Driscoll said.

“There are currently no other tournaments for the middle school teams. There used to be some local competitions, but now there are no other local teams for us to practice with,” Driscoll said.

The U.P. tournament allow five students on a team, she said. The other students are considered alternates and are welcome to attend the tournament.

In addition, when tournament slots are available, more than one team from KMS can be entered, Driscoll said.

The KMS Quiz Bowl team this year did great, she said, with one group finishing fourth among 25 teams in the U.P. Championships.

The fourth-place finishers included Sam Gaucher as captain, along with Mika Yuhasey, Peyton Johnson, Sam Bilgreen and Zach Rankin.

The other KMS team had Marli Smith, Bennett Klossner, Josh Benz, Micah Lerman and Samantha Doren.

Seventh-grader Rankin is in his second year on the KMS Quiz Bowl team. He said his favorite part was winning his last match and advancing to the finals.

“You are excited and nervous, because you know they are the best teams in the competition,” Rankin said.

Sixth-grader Yuhasey is in his first year on the team, and said he enjoys “the questions and the competition. I am ready for next year.”

His enthusiasm has carried over to his dad, Tim Yuhasey, who has attended every practice and every match in the tournament.

“I saw how competitive and how much fun they had doing it. It was a pleasure to watch,” Tim Yuhasey said.

Driscoll said she appreciates that Quiz Bowl “literally supports every class the kids take. We review topics and they get previews of upcoming classes with the harder questions.”

She also coaches the high school team and hopes her KMS Quiz Bowl students will continue with the competition as they move up in grades.

Since Driscoll is the freshman English teacher at the high school, coaching the middle school teams gives her a jump on getting to know her future students.

About a third of the middle schoolers she worked with this year were participating in Quiz Bowl for the first time. Two of those sixth-graders were on the team that made it to the tournament semi-finals.

“The older kids are great at mentoring the younger ones and making them feel a part of the group. The kids seem to have a lot of fun and we finish the season with an end-of-the-year party, Driscoll said. “The kids are often upset that the team only meets for the first semester.”

She added the Quiz Bowl eighth-graders now practice with the high school team once a week for the rest of the year.

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