By: Drew Huddleston
On Saturday, January 23rd, Quaker Valley defeated Brashear and Leechburgh High Schools on KDKA’s Hometown High Q, a local high school trivia competition hosted by weatherman Ray Peterlin.
Comprised of seniors Felix Cooper, Brody Jones, Cameron Bishop, Christian Inacio, Emma Parker, and captain Gabe Musial, the team led Quaker Valley to their 7th playoff qualification in the last eight years, an impressive record made possible by Mr. Welch, who’s been coaching students for the past 16 years.
The episode marks the culmination of months of studying. Team members reviewed past shows to better understand the types of questions they would be asked. Team captain Gabe Musial hailed Mr. Welch, whose past experience perfectly prepared them for what to expect. Additionally, each member was assigned one focal area to study.
This year, due to Covid-19 restrictions, the show was entirely pre-recorded on zoom, which allowed team members more time to discuss their answers. Christan, Emma, and Gabe all competed in the qualifying episode. “It’s definitely a collaborative game,” stated Gabe, the third member of his family to compete in Hometown High Q, “It was good to have people I could trust.”
It seems that Gabe’s trust was well put, as QV did not miss a single point for the first three rounds of questions, the only team on the episode to do so. Even despite dominating the competition in the first three rounds, the Quakers remained vigilant. “We were ready for anything,” Gabe said.
When the dust settled in the final round, it was revealed that QV had tied with Brashear High School, initiating the season’s first tiebreaker round: a sudden death multiple choice round between the two team captains. “I was more nervous, and felt more pressure knowing that it would just be the two of us on the screen,” Gabe recalled upon hearing that he would be competing in the in tie-breaker round, “But we had been prepared by Mr. Welch, who’s a great coach, and we were able to pull it out in the end.”
QV emerged victorious, defeating Brashear in the tiebreaker round, and winning the episode with a score of 435 points. Because of their victory, the QV team will be advancing to the playoffs this spring.
“Thanks to anyone who tuned in,” Gabe remarked. Those who were not able to watch the episode on Saturday can find the episode on the KDKA webpage, and linked below.
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