Bowl in Chicago
Six players from the RCHS Scholastic Bowl team recently competed in the Small Schools National Competition Tournament held in Chicago. The Panthers team, coached by Dave Naser and Timothy Stockdale, and captained by junior Lauren Petty, took 17th place out of a field of 80 teams (top 25 percent) and placed 9th out of 46 teams from Very Small Schools (300 students or less).
The other players were seniors Bryce Jones and Serenity Cortez, junior Donavan Zook, and sophomores Alec Petty and Daniel Dalle Lucca.
Lauren Petty was ranked 44th best out of 436 players. Naser exulted over the outcome of the tournament, noting that with Lauren, her brother Alec Petty (ranked 92nd) and Daniel Dalle Lucca at 163rd, the team has a solid core of talent for next year. The full statistics for the tournament can be accessed at naqt.com.
“I’m extremely proud of all my fellow team members and hope we can pursue similar opportunities next year,” said Petty.
Coach Naser noted that the trip would not have been possible without school and community support. We especially want to thank the RCPS administration, the PTO, Headwaters, and the Rappahannock Lions Club, but there were many others who helped out.
He added: “It is with a note of sadness that we received news of Dr. Bob Chappel’s death on the day before the tournament. Dr. Bob has been attending our matches for years, and not just at home. He always was there for ‘It’s Academic’ and States and was a volunteer official at home matches. In addition after a tournament, he would always open his wallet and ask me to take the players out for a nice meal.”