WEGO’s Scholastic Bowl team makes competition look trivial

WEGO’s Scholastic Bowl team took the win over Fenton High School with a score of 280-80 after preparing for their first home meet of the season on Tuesday, Jan. 30th.

The team had been gearing up for their first meet of the year. The varsity team’s meet was held in Coach Nicholas Caltigirone’s classroom, and the JV team’s meet was held in Joe Zeman’s room.

“I do miss that feeling of when we first started and I really admired our varsity team at the time, but I think every year the new people we get bring something to the club,” Scholastic Bowl captain Enaya Kazmi said.

The team’s first two meets were canceled due to weather conditions. The competition has been greatly anticipated by its members, and are ready to have their first meet officially.

Many members from last year’s team (pictured above) have returned to compete for an additional year on the Varsity team. (Photo by Michael Birdsell)

“It was supposed to be our third match of the year, but in fact, it will be our first match of the year, because of the e-learning days, we had two previous matches that have been postponed and rescheduled for February,” Caltagirone said.

Scholastic Bowl is a competitive trivia team in which participants have to be the first to “buzz in” and answer a set of toss-up questions to win points. The faster team receives the opportunity to answer bonus questions to get the chance to receive more points; however, the opposing team may be able to “steal” the point if answering incorrectly. The team competes with varsities from other participating schools. Scholastic Bowl also features a JV team, allowing new members to have the chance to compete as well.

“I like being able to put my knowledge to the test in a competitive sense…I plan on sticking with it for the rest of my time at WEGO,” sophomore Jacob Benitez said.

About the Contributors

Ryley Salazar, Reporter

Ryley Salazar likes filming and editing videos, and is good with a camera, having created several YouTube videos back in middle school. Since then, Ryley has become active in WeGo Drama, and has performed in a number of shows, including playing Audrey II in "Little Shop of Horrors", Grandpa Joe from "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory", and Tom Buchanan in "The Great Gatsby". Ryley also likes to watch movies after school, and can frequently be found at the movie theater. It is no surprise, then, that people describe Ryley as "funny" and "creative."

Dania Cureno, Reporter

Even though Dania Cureno loves WEGO, she sees more opportunities in the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy, as she would like to pursue something in the science and mathematics fields. As a freshman, Dania hopes to attend the prestigious school in the future. Dania likes playing soccer and has been actively involved in the sport since she was six years old; she is ready for the soccer season to begin in the spring. She also enjoys socializing with people, and describes herself as "funny, clumsy, oblivious, and naive."

Melanie Ballines, Reporter

Melanie Ballines strives to go to college and become a vet tech once she completes her last semester as a senior. COVID put up a new challenge for her during the freshman year of high school, but her cat, Dante, was there right with her on the journey. Since first grade, Melanie has been rocking it out with the violin, taking classes in and out of school in programs like CODA. Some would consider her “Goddess of Organization”, but only if you catch her in a good mood!

Ja'Nyah Villa, Senior Reporter

Ja'Nyah is a sophomore this year and in her first semester of Journalism production. She is very driven and dedicated to her schoolwork and extracurricular activities. Outside of Journalism, Ja'Nyah is an active member of Wego Drama and her hobbies include reading and listening to music. In the future, Nyah hopes to pursue a career in literary editing or journalism after college.

Dhanveer Gill, Managing Editor

Dhanveer Gill is a senior at WCCHS and this is his second year on the Wildcat Chronicle. Dhanveer is a dedicated Math Team member, NHS member, and senior engineer of WeGo's Robotics Team. Outside of school, he loves to be in the gym, go on long (and he means very long) bicycle rides, listen to music, and write. In the future, Dhanveer wants to pursue computer engineering and minor in journalism.

Michael Birdsell, Reviews Editor

Michael is a senior, and a second-year member of the Wildcat Chronicle. He has been involved with the West Chicago golf, tennis, and scholastic bowl teams throughout his time in high school. In his free time, he enjoys reading literary fiction, watching arthouse films, and listening to music. He plans to attend a four-year university to study either English or law.

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Antonietta Birdsell • Apr 16, 2024 at 12:21 am

Congratulations Scholastic Bowl team! Well written article.

https://wildcatchronicle.org/18528/news/wegos-scholastic-bowl-team-makes-competition-look-trivial/#comment-343