The last time Scholars Bowl won a Kansas State High School Activities Association state competition was in 2015. 10 years later, the team got the closest they’ve been to that title since, placing second in the 6A competition last season. This season, the team placed first at regionals on Thursday, Feb. 4, getting them closer to winning the state title.

Senior Ian Weatherman has been on the team for four years and is really proud of the progress the team has made since he joined.

“It was the culmination of a really cool year,” Weatherman said. “We got a ton of first place finishes at meets last year. It was really awesome to prove that our team could do really well. Getting second at state was an awesome feeling to be able to prove that we were as good as the top teams there.”

For Weatherman, the biggest change the teams made was the introduction of a new sponsor two seasons ago, social studies teacher Tina Keith.

“When Keith took over, she really put an emphasis on bringing together the team and working,” Weatherman said. “She really had a passion for [Scholars Bowl] that the teacher before didn’t have.”

Keith wanted to coach Scholars Bowl because of the special connection she has to it.

“My son had been on the Scholars Bowl team when he went to school here, and I knew how much it meant to him. Seeing him be successful in Scholars Bowl, I wanted to do the same thing,” Keith said.

Weatherman’s time on the team hasn’t just been about competing, but also building stronger friendships with his teammates.

“I’ve gotten to know more people on the team, and it’s just been a really cool experience to be able to watch over those four years as we get better as a team,” Weatherman said.

In his third season on the team, senior Will Schieber loves being able to apply what he learns in school in a fun way.

“I can learn something and [although] I may not need it going into college or my career, but I can use it for Scholars Bowl, and that’s good enough, because it’s really fun,” Schieber said.