Shippensburg Middle Quiz Bowl

Even though I’m still in denial the time has come… I want to give a huge congratulations to our 8th-grade Quiz Bowl members who will be finishing up their final week of middle school!

Whether you’ve been on the team for two years or three, you have left an unforgettable mark on the program.

Thank you for the hundreds of hours of dedication, laughter, and the endless support you've shown one another. You aren't just an incredibly smart group. You are phenomenal teammates and friends.

High school is getting an amazing bunch. Never lose your individuality, stay true to yourselves, and remember…you always have a buzzer waiting for you back here.

Go do great things!

Congratulations Converse!

Tournament Rising Stars

That’s a wrap on the 2026 National Championship! 🏆

We are home after days of grueling competition and some unforgettable Chicago memories, and 75k+ steps! It wasn’t all buzzers and toss-ups, though. We really took a "deep dive" into the Windy City and visited some sites we talked about during our numerous practices and study sessions.

Here are some sites we took in…

🎨 The Museum: Seeing pieces in person that we’ve spent months studying in practice was a total "lightbulb" moment for the team.

🏙️ The Views: 103 floors up at the Willis Tower (it’ll always be the Sears Tower to us!) and a stunning riverfront architecture walk.

⚾ Stops at Wrigley Field and a mandatory photo op at Cloud Gate (The Bean).

⚡ We couldn’t leave without a visit to the Harry Potter shop!

So proud of this team’s grit and curiosity.

Chicago, you were legendary! ✈️🍎

A massive THANK YOU to our Quiz Bowl parents and siblings! 🏆

From the sacrifices of time and travel to the financial support that keeps us buzzing, we know we wouldn’t be here without our families.

Special thanks to the parents who make it all possible and the siblings who tagged along to cheer us on (and stayed patient through those long rounds!).

Whether you traveled with us this weekend or supported us from home, you are the heart of this team.

It truly takes a village to power these minds, and we have the best one out there! 🧠✨

The Quiz Bowl team focused on Art and Literature the last few weeks during practice. These are some pieces we talked about and the kids were exciting to see them today! It was fun seeing them connect with these iconic pieces and even find other artists’ pieces and pointing them out like Rodin, Monet, Picasso, and more.

A Special Shout-Out to Captain Levi Guyer

Levi, as we wrap up this season, I wanted to take a moment to specifically recognize your "impeccable" leadership of the SAMS Quiz Bowl team. While our success is a collective effort, your contributions as Captain have been the backbone of our strategy and spirit.

The Architect of the Game Plan

Beyond just answering questions, you’ve handled the "heavy lifting" that often goes unseen:

⭐️Roster Management: Ensuring we always had the right players in the right seats.
⭐️Data Analysis: Helping me dive into the numbers to refine our game plans and outmaneuver the competition.
⭐️The Team Glue: Most importantly, keeping the team cohesive and focused during moments of defeat or frustration. Your poise under pressure kept us in the game.

🏅National Dominance by the Numbers🏅

Your individual performance at Nationals was, quite frankly, staggering. The data speaks for itself:

⭐️The Gap: You finished nearly 60% higher than all other individual scorers.
⭐️The Elite Tier: This performance places you in the top 3% of players in the nation.

🏆A Proud Moment for SAMS 🏆

Because of your leadership and the hard work of every member, the SAMS Quiz Bowl team sits in the top 7% nationally. I am incredibly proud of the entire team, but Levi, your dedication has been the X-factor. Thank you for your hard work, your brilliance, and for leading this team with such excellence.

🏆NATIONAL PODIUM ALERT! 🏆

Huge congratulations to Shippensburg’s own Converse Vassallo for an absolutely dominant performance! We crunched the numbers across 100 of the top 6th graders in the country, and the results are in:

Converse is officially RANKED #3 (for 6th grade) IN THE NATION for Total Powers! 🥉He is taking home the Rising Star award!

The Breakdown:

⭐️Elite Speed: In the world of Quiz Bowl, a "Power" means you knew the answer before anyone else. Converse racked up 17 Powers, landing him on the national podium alongside only two other players in the entire country!

⭐️Speed Demon: With a 38.6% Power Rate, Converse is nearly 2x faster on the buzzer than the average 6th-grade competitor.

⭐️Fearless Player: He’s not just playing; he’s taking the big risks that lead to big points.

Way to represent on the national stage, Converse! 🎊🙌

Day 2 - So proud of this Shippensburg crew! 🐾

We walked away with three solid wins against:
🏆Nysmith Middle
🏆Immaculate Conception St. Joseph Middle
🏆St. Josaphat Middle

⭐️We also have an individual award winner! Converse Vassallo who will receive a rising star award at the awards ceremony.

We would also like to give a shout out to Levi, the amazing team captain who placed 415 out of the entire pack of close to 1,000! 🏆

And we have to mention the absolute nail-biter against Annunciation Orthodox—a heart-pounding 210-220 finish!!!

We finished ahead of 51 other teams! Although, we didn’t quite punch our ticket to the playoffs this time around, we finished incredibly solid and proved that Shippensburg can go toe-to-toe with the best. The kids had a ton of fun and showed everyone exactly what we're made of.

What’s Next?
Tomorrow, we take on the consolation bracket alongside 140 other teams.

We’re ready to keep the momentum - stay tuned and thanks for showering the team with love and support!

Here we go! Stay tuned for updates later today…

We are officially Chicago-bound for the National Middle School Quiz Bowl Tournament! We want to extend our deepest thanks to everyone who invested in the team —whether through financial donations, volunteering your time, or simply offering moral support.

We’re ready to give it our all! Follow along for updates from the tournament. 🏆