This past month, the Lexington High School Science Bowl A team defended their title as the top team in the United States, earning their third win in a row. Competing against 67 other teams, the Lexington team proved their skillset and battled their way to victory at the national competition hosted in D.C.
The National Science Bowl is an annual event where teams compete to demonstrate their knowledge in STEM fields. Hosted by the Department of Energy, the competition is a four-person time-based buzzer competition that asks questions in categories including science, physics, biology, chemistry, and energy.
During the competition, a moderator asks two types of questions: toss-ups and bonuses. Team members cannot communicate in toss-up questions, which are worth four points. However, the team can communicate when answering bonus questions, which are only given to one team at a time.
Out of the four Lexington teams, A, B, C, and D, Shreyas Ekanathan was a member of the A team this year and was their expert in earth science and math. Ekanathan, a current junior and member of the Science Bowl team since his freshman year, views the team dynamics as one of the most satisfying parts of the competition.
“[The teammates] are all very fun to hang out with and be around so it’s just like a really fun experience,” Ekanathan said.
After the teams are determined by tryouts in the fall, members meet up to practice once a week and then twice a week later in the season. Since the Lexington team has extreme depth in their talent, the A team often competes against the B team in the final rounds of the regional level, an impressive fact when considering the number of teams.
David Zhou, a Science Bowl captain, has been a member of the team for the last four years. Zhou expresses his gratitude for the team.
“It’s been a big part of my growth, both academically and socially through high school with the community of people through the years I’ve met there,” Zhou said.
Zhou explains that, alongside the great community of the team, one of the best parts of the Science Bowl is the competitiveness.
“One side is just the raw adrenaline rush or the raw fun that comes with competing with buzzing in on hard questions and getting them right. It’s a fun competitive space where I can explore science and do it in a more enjoyable way,” Zhou said.
Zhou also notes that the team’s shared love for science has created a welcoming community.
“I would say, some of them are my really close friends right now. So it’s just that the bond that I’ve built over the years has been through competing and through just studying and learning science together,” Zhou said.
