The Crookston High School Knowledge Bowl team is ready to compete in the virtual state competition held on Thursday, April 8. The Pirate team is made up of Ella Weber, Anke Wiersma, Ainsley Boucher, Tatum Lubinski, and Thor Harbott.
This is the third straight year Crookston has had a team qualify for state, something advisor Katelyn Stegman said was a real honor for the school. “This is only my second year as the senior high coach, but if I remember correctly, it’s the third time. Three years ago, they got to go, and everybody had a really nice time,” said Stegman. “Last year, I was super disappointed because everyone worked very, very hard and earned the right, and then the experience of going to state was stolen. So, while it is virtual, and I won’t say it’s not as rewarding…I’d almost say it’s more rewarding because we’ve overcome more hurdles. I’m super stoked that our team has kept up the rigor, and we’re earning our place. Even though we lost a bunch of awesome seniors last year, we’re still going strong with a bunch of great kids. Three years in a row, that’s a huge honor for our school.”
The team finished fourth after an overtime round with Bagley at the regional competition, but before that, they had to overcome a pretty large deficit in the final round. “What happened was the round before was really definitive,” said team member Anke Wiersma. “We were about a place behind for whether or not we were going to state, and we had a quite large point gap. So, the round right before overtime was where it was really crunch time, and we put a lot of effort in. By the time we got to the overtime, and we were both guaranteed spots, we were like – oh my, a little tired – but yeah, we did good.”
Harbott said the pressure was off for overtime. “When I knew we had made it, I wasn’t too concerned,” said Harbott. “I didn’t see anything it would change if we took fourth.”
Like all the knowledge bowl competitions this year, state will be held virtually. Boucher said she’s glad the team gets to compete after state was canceled last year. “I was on the team that made it to state last year, but we weren’t able to do anything,” said Boucher. “So, I’m glad we’re able to go this year and do a virtual competition even though we can’t go in person. I’d rather be able to at least do it virtually.”
Wiersma said she’s sad they are missing out on a state trip but is excited the team will get to compete. “I went with the state team that went two years ago, and that was a lot of fun,” said Wiersma. “So, I’m sad that we’re missing out on that whole like three-day experience in a resort. But I’m really excited with the team this year, and I think we have a good vibe going. So, I’m really excited that we’re able to share our skills and go to state.”
As for their goals at state, Weber said the goal is to have fun. “I think our main goal is just to have fun and put forth our best effort,” said Weber. “I don’t think we’re exactly vying for first place, so I think we’re going in with the expectation to just have fun.”
Lubinski said he wants to see how the team stacks up against the other teams at state. “I just want to see how we stack up against everyone else,” said Lubinski. “And represent northern Minnesota the best we can.”
For more on the Knowledge Bowl team, listen to Focus on Education on KROX Radio on Saturday at 8:35 a.m.
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