National Science Bowl

After having competed virtually for three years, the Ames High Science Bowl team qualified and competed at the National Science Bowl Championships in Washington D.C. in July as one of eight top teams in the nation. Here is a recap of their 4 day journey as shared on the District’s social media.

Day 1 (Friday) of the 2022 National Science Bowl (NSB) Experience was a long day of travel and waiting. The Ames High team was the first HS team to arrive and they finished the day with a night tour of some national monuments and memorials. 

Day 2 (Saturday) of the National Science Bowl (NSB) started with a power outage (ironic as it is sponsored by the US Department of Energy). The team powered through the Cyber and Discovery team challenges to warm up for the competition ahead. Since this is the first face to face competition in almost 3 years, there was also time to practice with buzzers against another team.

Day 3 (Sunday) Competition Day! All 8 teams competed in a round robin tournament for seeding in the double elimination bracket. Ames played 9 matches in just under 8 hours – full of extremely challenging questions, lead changes, games determined by just 2 points, an octopus for a mascot (us), and challenges where Ames came out on top! Congratulations to the Little Cyclones for representing Ames High School with tremendous pride and finishing 5th in the nation.

Day 4 (Monday) NSB competition wrapped up and the team was treated to some words of advice from the Director of the Office of Science Dr. Asmeret Asefaw Behret. A trip to the National Mall for some touring filled the afternoon and our NSB time finished with a farewell banquet. Today ended a fantastic Science Bowl career for three Ames High 2022 graduates. Collectively, they spent 19 seasons on a Science Bowl team representing Ames Schools from grades 6 – 12. Rishabh, Ne, and Jacob may even return to the National Science Bowl as future volunteers!