Home Official News Releases Drake Quiz Bowl team ranks fourth in sectional tournament

Drake Quiz Bowl team ranks fourth in sectional tournament

Drake University students tied for third place and ranked fourth overall at the National Academic Quiz Teams North Sectional Championship Tournament last month at the University of Minnesota.

Quiz Bowl consists of a series of competitive, intercollegiate trivia tournaments, in which questions are taken from the entire spectrum of a college curriculum, as well as current events, sports and popular culture.

Two teams of Drake students competed in the College Division II tournament, which featured a total of 11 teams from seven schools for the full round-robin tournament.

Drake Team A tied for third with a University of Minnesota team and placed fourth for the day following a brief-playoff round. Team members include:

  • Jessica Birdsell, a sophomore pre-pharmacy major from Stanberry, Mo.
  • Anna Dieterman, a junior secondary education major from Olathe, Kan.
  • Katie Fink, a senior history major from Marshalltown, Iowa
  • Levi Farrell, a sophomore law, politics and society major from Chariton, Iowa

In addition, Farrell finished seventh of 34 players in the individual high score, which is determined by the amount of points each player scored overall. 

Drake Team B, which ranked sixth for the day, consists of:

  • Batiesha Boeker, a sophomore chemistry major from Aviston, Ill.
  • Therese Sojka, a senior English and philosophy major from Downers Grove, Ill.
  • Brooke Saline, a sophomore history and law, politics and society major from Rio, Ill.

“The students in Quiz Bowl practice long hours in mock competitions, and travel by their own means to tournaments all over the Midwest,” said Drake Associate Professor of Clinical Sciences Geoff Wall, who serves as the team’s faculty adviser.

“Considering the University’s size and focus on undergraduate programs, the Drake Quiz Bowl has done considerably well against many larger programs in these tournaments,” said Wall, who played for the University of Utah Quiz Bowl in his own undergraduate years.

  

“I enjoy listening to the questions and figuring out how much I’ve managed to remember from past tournaments and practices,” said Boeker, president of Drake’s team. “It’s such a great opportunity to spend time with friends and test your knowledge of many things.”

Drake has actively competed in National Academic Quiz Teams events since 2004, including annual sectional tournaments each February. College teams participate in sectional tournaments to qualify for the Intercollegiate Championship Tournament (ICT), the most competitive college quiz bowl tournament in North America.

Drake students first competed in the ICT in 2007 in the College II Division, where they tied for fourth place with Harvard University and the University of Chicago. Drake students also competed in the ICT in 2008, ranking 14th of 32 teams in the College I Division.

Full statistics for Drake’s Quiz Bowl team are available online.