ROSEMONT, Illinois — On the weekend of Saturday, April 26, Schuyler R-1 School joined 153 of the top quiz bowl teams from small public high schools at the Hyatt Regency O’Hare Chicago for the 2025 Small School National Championship Tournament to determine who was the best.
Quiz bowl is a competitive, academic, interscholastic activity for teams of four students. It is the national version of the game that is often locally called Scholar Bowl. Quiz bowl teams use buzzers to answer questions about science, math, history, literature, mythology, geography, social science, current events, sports, and popular culture. The matches feature a blend of individual competition and team collaboration, since no individual player is likely to be an expert in all subject areas. Participation in quiz bowl both reinforces lessons from the classroom and encourages players to develop new intellectual interests.
The team, in the Traditional Public Schools Division, was captained by Carter Hoffmeyer, who was joined by Asher Applegate, Jaxson Kaden, and Deacon Schoonover. The team was coached by Ryan Kaden and Jamie Morlan.
Schuyler was one of 15 Missouri teams competing at the national championship.
Schuyler finished the preliminary rounds with a 5-5 record.
There were some tense moments. Schuyler suffered a heartbreakingly narrow loss to White Pigeon from Michigan, 255-235 during round 1.
Schuyler’s shot at the playoffs ended when they lost to Pleasant Plains from Illinois in round 13.
Schuyler R-1 School finished in 43rd place in the Traditional Public Schools Division. They also finished 15th among Very Small Schools teams.
The Traditional Public Schools Division champion was the A team from West Point High School Cullman, Alabama. The Open Division champion was the A team from St. Mark’s School of Texas Dallas, Texas.
The 2025 Small School National Championship Tournament (Traditional Public Schools Division)’s field featured 88 teams from 20 states.
