Herald Isuzu Schools Quiz heats up ahead of semifinals
● Prizes worth R290,000 at stake, with defending champions Paterson High still in the running
High school pupils from the Bay and Kouga regions displayed impressive general knowledge during the round of 16 and quarterfinals of the annual Herald Isuzu Schools Quiz at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium yesterday.
The eight teams that reached the quarterfinals were Sanctor High School, Victoria Park High, Walmer High, Morningside High, Paterson High, Nico Malan High, Collegiate High and Hillside Technical High.
From there, the competition heated up even more, with Victoria Park, Morningside, defending champions Paterson and Collegiate advancing to the semifinals to be held at the Southern Sun Marine Hotel on Sunday.
Last year’s third-place winners, Morningside, achieved the highest points in the round of 16, beating Westville High 11-4.
From there Morningside beat Walmer High School, one of this year’s strongest teams, 10-9 for a place in the semifinals.
Morningside’s Ebube Onyeme, 18, in grade 12, said their rounds had been stressful but that teamwork won the day.
Teammate Linamandla Gotyi, 17, also in grade 12, said they would step up their revision for the next round, with Uviwe Ntsali adding that other members of the school’s quiz club had helped the four of them prepare for the competition.
With Uviwe in grade 10, and the only pupil able to return to the quiz in 2024, his teammate Mzukisi Gomba, 18, said it was important for them to do well so they could motivate others to participate in future.
Nearly 800 questions have been posed so far.
A big pairing saw current champions Paterson High beating 2021 winners Alexander Road 10-9 for a spot in the quarterfinals.
Paterson continued their dominance by dispatching 2022 runners-up Nico Malan for a berth in next weekend’s semifinals.
The highest points tally in the quarterfinal went to Victoria Park, which beat one of the competition’s most formidable teams, Sanctor, 12-6 to reach the semifinals.
Victoria Park’s quiz captain, Liam Case, 15, said they had worked hard to represent the school in a positive way.
“Quiz isn’t really something people associate with our school; we are more of a sporting school, so it’s been good to represent VP on this front,” the grade 10 pupil said.
The quiz was an important part of the school calendar in years gone by and was revived in 2021, with about 160 pupils from 40 schools taking part this year.
Quizmaster Gareth Burley said it was well organised and lots of fun.
“I hope the schools have quiz clubs, because that can only benefit their teams,” Burley said.
“The highlight for me has been the dynamic between the team members on stage.
“You could see how it unravelled for those teams that did not work together.
“I don’t think pupils get enough opportunities like these nowadays to work together as a team.”
The Herald and Isuzu have been distributing copies of the newspaper to participating schools, with questions covering local, national and international news, politics, sport, business and entertainment.
The quiz boasts a prize package totalling R290,000.
Teams stand a chance to win R30,000 from co-title sponsor Isuzu Motors SA to be shared among the top three schools.
Axxess will give each of the four team members from the winning school LTE data with a free MiFi device for three months, or three months of free fibre to a total value of R14,000. In addition, the top three schools will receive free fibre and uncapped data, with a router, for 12 months, valued at R108,000, bringing the total value of Axxess’s prizes to R140,000.
Other sponsors include Caltex, Woodlands Dairy, PNA, Walmer Park Shopping Centre, Pickwick Books and Bargain Books.
The semifinal and final rounds will be live-streamed on The Herald’s Facebook page from 9am on Sunday.