Georgia 2010-2011

[AlphaQuizBowler]

What will Georgia quizbowl be like next year?

In terms of teams, here’s how I see it right now:
1. Alpharetta—We bring back all four members of the team that didn’t have a losing record against Brookwood, Centennial, Chattahoochee, or Walton last season and finished 17th at the NSC. Kunal assures me that he’s going to study, so we’ll see what happens there. How well we do at GATA Varsity State is really up in the air, because we always seem to do poorly at those tournaments.

2. Centennial—Adam Silverman’s impressive showing at the HSNCT makes me believe that Centennial will be back strong next year, even after losing Bradley, their second-highest scorer. I hope that they can make it to more tournaments next year, but they’ve shown that they don’t really need to in order to perform when it counts. They certainly have a shot at the GATA Varsity Championship, where Adam seems to be in the habit of picking up his game each year.

3. Walton—Abubakar was the highest individual scorer from Georgia at the HSNCT, coming in at 5th. Though Walton didn’t finish as highly as Chattahoochee and Centennial at HSNCT, they had solid performances at other events this year. If Abubakar continues to improve at the same rate, they could easily pass the two teams above them on this list, perhaps even by the beginning of next year.

4. Chattahoochee—They bring back 3 of 4 members of a team that tied for 17th at HSNCT. However, they probably lose the most scoring of any of the top Georgia teams, save Brookwood. Connie’s graduation leaves them with a huge hole in lit. They may have some B team players that can step up to fill that gap, and if they do, they will have a solid team. Rishi seems poised to emerge as one of the top players in Georgia, and, with the right support, he could lead Chattahoochee to some great finishes.

Other teams to watch:
Norcross—They may have been in the bottom bracket at NSC, but this team has shown a willingness to attend tournaments and a desire to improve. I’m not sure who’s returning (I think Andrew is, but not Wade), but I hope they will be a continued presence on the circuit next year.

Central Gwinnett—They didn’t make it to Varsity State or to a national tournament this year, but they had solid performances at tournaments like the UGA Classic City Classic and the Berry Scholar’s Bowl. They bring back a lot of scoring, I believe, including Dawit, so they look ready for another successful season.

In terms of tournaments, besides the big 3 of Walton, Brookwood, and Chattahoochee, I hope we see more mirrors of tournaments (and perhaps some HSAPQ sets?). Mrs. Hirsch said somewhere that Central might host HFT again, and I hope Norcross will consider another Prison Bowl Mirror. Alpharetta’s planning a house-written varsity tournament for early February, so I’ll put out more information on that when I get it.

In terms of national competitiveness of our region next year, I think Georgia teams showed that we can play on a high level. However, playing Maggie Walker at NSC showed me how much we lack experience playing against the very best teams. Hopefully Southside and Dorman will continue their attendance at Georgia tournaments, because playing against them will make the top Georgia teams more prepared for national competition. Given all the talented players returning, I think we could certainly see the top Georgia teams cracking the top 15 (and maybe even top 10) next year at national tournaments.

[Edward Powers]

William,

Since Alpharetta is returning its entire team from the NSC, and since it is a near certainty that you and your teammates will work hard to improve from this year to next, I suspect that Alpharetta will have an excellent chance at making the Top 10 at PACE's NSC in 2011---in fact, you almost played well enough to do it this year, but had a very very tough opening bracket. Still, your outstanding play in winning the 2nd Flight against some very gifted teams bodes well for your upcoming season.

Anyway, good luck in 2010-2011, for both you and all of our friends from Georgia. And maybe we'll see you again at the 2011 NSC, although it will be harder for us since we lost 3/4 of our starters to graduation. Still, I have some excellent returning underclassmen, so, we'll see. And do you confine your post-season to the NSC, or is it possible you could also go to the HSNCT if the 2010-2011 season is another excellent one for you?

Finally, I saw that you were honored by your peers in the season ending poll identifying the top 25 players this past year. Congratulations---from what I saw in your match against us, and in your overall stats for the tournament as a whole, it was well deserved.

[AlphaQuizBowler]

Coach Powers,
I am definitely excited about the upcoming season, and I'm sure my team will continue to work hard. As for the postseason, we're hoping to attend NSC and HSNCT next year, but I'm still trying to plan enough tournaments to pay for it.

[BlueDevil95]

Does anyone have any predictions for Georgia 2010-2011 JV Standings?
This should be interesting.

[centralhs]

Unlike recent years in Georgia, I'm not sure there is any one team that stands out as a dominant favorite for J.V. this year. And I'm not aware of any one standout J.V. player, like Adam Silverman from Centennial the past two years. Chattahoochee had a very good J.V. team last year but I don't know how many of the players from their J.V. A team will be eligible for J.V. again this year.

J.V. is generally harder to predict than Varsity because there is always the 'wild card' factor of rising 9th graders. I don't really follow the middle school "circuit" since our feeder middle school has no quiz bowl team.

EDIT: Just remembered that Chattahoochee is moving down to 4A next year for the state tournaments. I would imagine that the 4A race would pretty much come down to Chattahoochee and Lakeside. JV for 5A seems pretty wide open at this point, especially taking Chattahoochee out of the equation.

[BlueDevil95]

Hopefully Norcross will be back at their form a few years back. I'm studying hard to make that happen.
I look forward to hopefully playing Chattahoochee sometime in a tournament. It's always fun.

[AlphaQuizBowler]

I don't know a lot about the JV scene next year, as it seems that most of the top returning players will be at least juniors. Hopefully the novice division at GATA Fall will show us some impressive underclassmen. I'm also hoping that a lot of the incoming freshmen from Webb Bridge Middle School are interested in joining next year, because as of now, the membership of the Alpharetta JV team is pretty uncertain.

[centralhs]

Hopefully, there are a lot of interested players coming up from the Georgia middle schools this year because otherwise a lot of teams seem in danger of dying out or at least weakening considerably within the next few years. Since this appears to be somewhat of a rebuilding year for most J.V. level teams (at least in 5A, I don't know that much about the other divisions), it provides an excellent opportunity for success for any team like Norcross that has young players willing to work hard.

2010-2011 should be an exciting year for Georgia quiz bowl for 3 reasons:

(1) GATA is holding its first ever Fall tournament in October and it will be free to all teams. There will be two divisions, one for more experienced teams and one for novice teams. An NAQT "A" set will be used, making the tournament appropriate for JV teams or newer Varsity teams.

(2) Both the J.V. and Varsity State tournaments are free this year. The only fee for entering these tournaments will be the $15 annual GATA membership fee.

(3) NAQT Nationals will be held in Atlanta this year allowing any teams that qualify to participate without having to pay for travel expenses.

Once schools are back in session next month, GATA will send out much more detailed information about all of these events.

[jrbarry]

FREE tournaments??? Lord have mercy, what will they think of next? :-)

[Rountree]

To piggy-back on what Ms. Hirsch posted, the GATA Fall tournament will take place at 2 locations on the same day, October 16th: Bleckley County HS and Chattahoochee HS. We will be using an NAQT A Set TBD. We hope to pull at least 16 teams to both locations.

In regard to JV in GA for 2010-2011, I can say that last year we had the strongest freshman class I have had since I've been at Chattahoochee. Obviously, it remains to be seen what they will accomplish this year (and beyond), but I am enthusiastic about their interest and their abilities.

[BlueDevil95]

William, I wish your JV Team the best of luck and I look forward to eventually competing against them.
Mr. Rountree, I was very impressed by both your A-Team and B-Team for JV. No doubt they will continue to grow. Let's hope that we (Norcross) can give you some competition next year, even though you're moving down to 4A. I look forward to competing with you all.

[Rountree]

Just an update about GATA Fall: it looks like we will be using NAQT IS-97A. Again, this will be the same set used at both tournament sites, Chattahoochee and Bleckley County. Note: this is the set being used at the University of Alabama's tournament on September 18th, so please be cognizant of that fact when creating your fall tournament calendar.

We should have some fields posted in the coming days.

[Rountree]

With about 2.5 weeks to go before GATA Fall, here are our current fields:

Chattahoochee Site:
Regular Division -
Berkmar -- 2 teams
Blessed Trinity -- 1 team
Brookwood -- 2 teams
Cedar Shoals -- 2 teams
Centennial -- 2 teams
Central Gwinnett -- 2 teams
Chattahoochee -- 2 teams
Flowery Branch -- 2 teams
Grayson -- 2 teams
Hebron Christian -- 1 team
Jonesboro -- 1 team
Meadowcreek -- 1 team
Norcross -- 2 teams
Ola -- 2 teams
Roswell -- 2 teams
Tucker -- 2 teams
Union Grove -- 1 team
Walton -- 2 teams
Westminster -- 2 teams
Woodward -- 2 teams

Novice Division -
Apalachee -- 2 teams
Archer -- 1 team
Etowah -- 2 teams
Mountainview -- 1 team
Pickens County -- 2 teams
The Walker School -- 2 teams

Bleckley County Site:
Regular Division -
Baconton Charter -- 2 teams
Bainbridge -- 2 teams
Bleckley County -- 2 teams
Bradwell Institute -- 2 teams
Lamar County -- 1 team
Tattnall Square Academy -- 2 teams

Novice Division -
Montgomery County -- 1 team

Looking forward to it!

[Rountree]

A couple other states/regions have posted a calendar for tournaments happening in/near their specific locale. I think GA should do the same. If I have messed up something, post here and I will fix it. I bolded the SAT dates and the typical "dead" Saturdays because of holidays/breaks.

I can also post brief results here for quicker reference if y'all think that would be useful.

September 25 : Gwinnett County Tournament (IS-96)
Results: Varsity = 1. Brookwood, 2. Central Gwinnett, 3. Norcross, 4. Grayson;
JV = 1. Norcross, 2. GSMST, 3. North Gwinnett, 4. Duluth
October 2 : Walton (house-write)
Results: 1. Dorman A, 2. Chattahoochee A, 3. Brookwood A, 4. Dorman B
October 16 : GATA Fall @ Chattahoochee and Bleckley Co. (97A)
Results (CHS): Regular = 1. Centennial A, 2. Norcross A, 3. Alpharetta, 4. Brookwood A;
Results (CHS): Novice = 1. Rabun Gap-Nacoochee A, 2. Gordon Central, 3. Kell A, 4. Allatoona
Results (BCHS): 1. Bainbridge A, 2. Baconton Charter A, 3. Lamar County, 4. Central A
October 23 : GA Tech (Early Fall Tournament mirror); Cedar Shoals JV (99A)
Results (GA Tech): 1. USC A, 2. Chipola, 3. Walton, 4, UGA (open)
Results (CSHS): 1. Norcross, 2. Chattahoochee A, 3. Central Macon, 4. James Island
October 30 : Alpharetta JV (Fall Novice mirror)
Results: 1. Dorman, 2. Norcross A, 3. Chattahoochee A, 4. Walton A
November 6 : Berry Scholar's Bowl (house-write)
Results: 1. Walton, 2. Bainbridge, 3. Whitefield Academy, 4. Norcross
November 13 : Central Gwinnett (Harvard Fall mirror)
Results: 1. Chattahoochee A, 2. Alpharetta, 3. Norcross, 4. Brookwood A
November 20 : Brookwood Varsity (house-write)
Results: 1. Dorman A, 2. Centennial, 3. Walton A, 4. Alpharetta
December 11 : CATT VI (BATE Tournament mirror)
Results: 1. Centennial, 2. Dorman A, 3. Alpharetta A, 4. Dorman B

January 8 : Savannah Country Day (IS-100)
Results: 1. Flowery Branch A, 2. Woodward A, 3. Ola A, 4. GAC A
January 22 : Dorman, SC (house-write)
Results: 1. Dunbar, 2. DuPont A, 3. Ezell Harding, 4. Chamblee
January 29 : Bulldawg Brawl at Cedar Shoals (IS-102)
Results: 1. Walton A, 2. Dorman A, 3. Chattahoochee A, 4. Lakeside A
February 5th : Alpharetta Varsity (GSAC mirror)
Results: 1. Centennial, 2. Chattahoochee A, 3. House, 4. Norcross
February 9 : Fulton County Tournament (IS-100)
Results: 1. Alpharetta, 2. Chattahoochee, 3. Centennial, 4. Northview
February 12 : Brookwood JV (house-write)
Results: 1. Dorman A, 2. Ezell Harding A, 3. Chattahoochee A, 4. Norcross A
February 19 : UGA Classic City Classic (IS-98); N. GA Tournament (IS-93A)
Results (UGA): 1. Centennial, 2. Dorman A, 3. Dorman B, 4. Central Gwinnett
Results (NGA): 1. Cedar Shoals A, 2. Woodstock A, 3. Lakeside-Evans, 4. Cedar Shoals B
February 26 : GATA JV State Championship at Ola High School
Results 5A: 1. , 2. , 3. , 4.
Results 4A: 1. , 2. , 3. , 4.
Results 3A: 1. , 2. , 3. , 4.
Results 2A: 1. , 2. , 3. , 4.
Results 1A: 1. , 2. , 3. , 4.
March 5 : National History Bee and Bowl at Ola High School
March 12 : Norcross (Prison Bowl mirror)
Results: 1. , 2. , 3. , 4.
March 19 : Jag Bowl at Cedar Shoals (IS-104); Chattahoochee MS CATT (CMST mirror)
Results (CSHS): 1. , 2. , 3. , 4.
Results (CHS): 1. , 2. , 3. , 4.
March 26 : GATA Varsity State Championship at Ola High School
Results: 1. , 2. , 3. 4.
April 16 : GA Tech (SCT DII mirror)
Results: 1. , 2. , 3. 4.
April 23 : Cedar Shoals Hybrid
Results: 1. , 2. , 3. 4.
May 28 : NAQT HSNCT at the Hyatt Hotel in Atlanta, GA
Results: 1. , 2. , 3. 4.

[jburnsOHS]

On another topic: Has anyone else noticed that, while GATA's tournaments are free this year, other Georgia tournaments are RAISING registration fees? $70 for a JV tournament? The two concepts are kind of at odds, don't you think?

[AlphaQuizBowler]

On another topic: Has anyone else noticed that, while GATA's tournaments are free this year, other Georgia tournaments are RAISING registration fees? $70 for a JV tournament? The two concepts are kind of at odds, don't you think?

Which tournament is this? Don't worry, spots at Alpharetta JV are still available for the same low price of $55 (or less).

[Rountree]

Cedar Shoals has charged $70 for their tournaments for as long as I can remember. However, if I recall correctly, they now give (and maybe they always have given) discounts for additional teams, workers, and buzzers (I think). While I personally think $70 is a little high for tournaments, I also realize that the only source of revenue for many teams is the tournament they host. When you factor in things like providing food for readers, custodial/facility fees (which many schools charge), and/or the cost of the questions, that $70 shrinks very quickly to half as much profit (or less). This is not an apology for higher registration fees (comparable to tournaments around you), but rather a possible explanation of the economics behind them for some teams.

EDIT: clarity

[jrbarry]

Brookwood (#2 seed) won the varsity division (16 teams) of the Gwinnett County Scholars Bowl on Saturday, Sepr 25. BHS beat Norcoss (#3 seed) in the semis and then Central Gwinnett (#1 seed) in the championship match.

Norcross won the JV division beating Gwinnett Math Science School in the JV championship match.

[CSQuizJags]

Elliot,
With the fact we now have to pay for buses to tournaments AND (my personal favorite) security for the event, because you KNOW how heated matches can get sometimes <rolls eyes> (we've managed to lay low on this one, sometimes coupling up with a basketball game the same day), yes, that $70 becomes $50 per team and sometimes less when it's all said and done. We stopped feeding staff as well. We do (and still will) give discounts for multiple teams AND readers/worker for all events. Savannah Country also charges $70 for their event (NAQT as well).

Economics is certainly giving us all a lesson right now...I also had my coaching supplement cut this year and naturally got a muddled reason as to why (particularly after a pretty dang good year last year).

[AlphaQuizBowler]

because you KNOW how heated matches can get sometimes <rolls eyes>

You must never have seen me protest before.

[Rountree]

I have updated the above calendar post with results from last weekend's first-ever GATA Fall. If I made a mistake somewhere, let me know and I will correct it. Looking forward to this weekend's EFT and the JV Jag Bowl.

[quizbowllee]

Dear Georgia Teams:

I have hijacked your thread to tell you to come to our tournament Dec. 4 at Columbia High School in Huntsville, AL. That is all.

[jburnsOHS]

Hey Lee,
If you want, send an announcement and registration form to our webmaster @ [email protected] to post on our calendar at www.georgiaquizbowl.com

[Kwang the Ninja]

Just stopping by to say that Walton and Chattahoochee are two enormously impressive teams. I do not envy anyone who has to play them on a regular basis.

[Edward Powers]

I see a "William Horton" registered for the HFT at Harvard on November 13th. Could this be our friend William from Alpharetta? Curious here in Jersey.

[Rountree]

I see a "William Horton" registered for the HFT at Harvard on November 13th. Could this be our friend William from Alpharetta? Curious here in Jersey.

I do believe they are one in the same. I think he is making his college visit conveniently coincide with the HFT. William, feel free to correct me.

[AlphaQuizBowler]

I see a "William Horton" registered for the HFT at Harvard on November 13th. Could this be our friend William from Alpharetta? Curious here in Jersey.

I do believe they are one in the same. I think he is making his college visit conveniently coincide with the HFT. William, feel free to correct me.

Unfortunately, those plans didn't really work out, so I won't be in Boston that weekend. I will be playing the Central Gwinnett mirror, though, and I'm looking forward to a great set.

[Edward Powers]

William,

Sorry your plans did not work out. It would have been fun to see you playing in that great field. But you now have another excellent field in which you can play, and you can do so with your teammates there, so good luck at the Central Gwinnett mirror.

[Rountree]

Thread Bump...

Results on the GA calendar above are up-to-date and accurate (as far as I know) through this past Saturday.

[CSQuizJags]

Elliot,

The Kris Durham Memorial Hybrid will be mirroring LIST. Info for such is seen here:

http://www.hsquizbowl.org/forums/viewto ... ST#p207027

[AlphaQuizBowler]

I'm hoping that Centennial's performance on GSAC improves its reputation on the national scene, considering its PPB ended up exceeding those of Richard Montgomery (who Fred has ranked 10th), Auburn A (9), TJ A (8), and even, by the slimmest of margins, Dorman A (5), who they also beat at Chattahoochee's BATE mirror.

[AKKOLADE]

If people didn't already see that Centennial was really, really good, even before this past weekend, then I'd have to say those people don't understand quiz bowl.

[Rountree]

Thread Bump...

Results on the GA calendar above are up-to-date and accurate (as far as I know) through this past Saturday.

[jburnsOHS]

The 2011 State JV Championship was held at Ola High School on Saturday Feb 26, with approximately 63 teams competing in 5 classifications. Results are as follows:

5A:

Walton
Norcross A
North Gwinnett
Duluth
Sportsmanship Norcross B

4A:

1. Chamblee

2. Chattahoochee A

3. Cedar Shoals

4. Flowery Branch A

Sportsmanship Dunwoody A



3A:

Eastside
Woodward Academy A
Woodward Academy B
Locust Grove
Sportsmanship Award Woodward B

2A:

1. GSMST

2. Westminster A

3. Lovett

4. Blessed Trinity

Sportsmanship Westminster B



1A:

1. Oak Mountain Academy
2. Baconton Charter
3. The Walker School
4. Prince Avenue Christian
Sportsmanship Rabun Gap

Congratulations to the winners and participants!

[centralhs]

Here is the field for this Saturday's Varsity State tournament:

A:
Baconton Charter
Galloway
GAMES (high school program at Middle Georgia College)
Paideia
Prince Avenue Christian
Providence Christian Academy
Savannah Country Day
Walker School
Whitefield Academy

AA:
Bleckley County
Blessed Trinity
Buford
Calhoun
Crawford County
GACS
Jasper County
Lamar County
Sonoraville
Vidalia
Swainsboro
Westminster

AAA:
Allatoona
Central High School (Macon)
Davidson Fine Arts
Eastside
Locust Grove
Pickens High School
St. Pius X
Woodward

AAAA:
Apalachee
Bainbridge
Cedar Shoals
Chattahoochee
Dunwoody
East Paulding
Flowery Branch
Heritage
Jonesboro
Kell
Lakeside
Marist
Ola
Sequoyah
Starr's Mill
Tucker
Union Grove
Villa Rica
Ware County

AAAAA:
Alpharetta
Berkmar
Brookwood
Centennial
Central Gwinnett
Grayson
Meadowcreek
Mountain View
Norcross
North Gwinnett
Roswell
Shiloh
Walton
Woodstock

[grashid]

I have it on a good source that Walton won the 5A Varsity State Championship. Congratulations to my former school on a fantastic year so far.

[jburnsOHS]

A Winners
1st – Savannah Country Day
2nd – Baconton Charter
3rd – Paideia
4th – Walker School


AA Winnners
1st – Westminster
2nd – Blessed Trinity
3rd – Greater Atlanta Christian School
4th – Vidalia

3A
1-Eastside
2-Woodward
3-Pickens Co
4-St Pius X


4A
1-Chattahoochee
2-Lakeside
3-Bainbridge
4 -Flowery Branch


5A
1st -- Walton
2nd -- Centennial
3rd -- Alpharetta
4th -- Brookwood

[jburnsOHS]

correction: Norcross won 7 - 5A region trophy