Bow High, Plymouth Regional Meet In Granite State Challenge Quarterfinal On NH PBS

DURHAM, NH — Bow High School will face Plymouth Regional High School in a Granite State Challenge quarterfinal matchup at 8:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 23, on New Hampshire PBS.

Bow High is represented by a team captained by 12th-grader Matthew Kropp. The starting lineup includes 11th-grader Matthew Mampuzha and 9th-graders Ollie White and Max Lewis. Alternates are 9th-grader Anna Mampuzha and 11th-grader Jayden Kropiewnicki. The team is coached by Michelle Hlavaz. Bow High serves the communities of Bow and Dunbarton and has 650 students. The school advanced to the final game in 2021, where it lost to Merrimack High.

Looking ahead to the matchup, Kropp said, “I think we're definitely the underdogs here, but I think we have a strong chance of winning it.”

Bow was prepared for the next round by competing against the school principal and faculty.

Hlavaz said, “I think they're excited. They know that Plymouth is a tough competitor, and we're just going to do our best.”

Plymouth Regional High will bring a team captained by 11th-grader Abe Hanken. The starting lineup also includes 11th-graders Yuriy Paul and Ezra Amsden and 9th-grader Aurora Ricker. Alternates are Leif Eisenbarth, a 10th-grader, and 9th graders Cam Cawley and Olivia Brayfield. The team is coached by Jay Fogarty, a drafting teacher, and Troy Harris, a world languages teacher. The school enrolls 640 students and serves Plymouth, Ashland, Holderness, Campton, Rumney, Wentworth, Ellsworth, Waterville Valley, and Thornton.

Plymouth Regional High is a three-time Granite State Challenge champion, with titles in 1996, 2013, and 2019. The school also appeared in the final match in 2018, 2020, 2023, and 2024.

Hanken said, “I like hanging out with my team. We have a great team this year. Last year I was here with a team of all seniors and now they're all gone. So, it's pretty fun having a whole new team here this year.”

Fogarty added, “We have three freshmen on the team this year, which is fantastic for the future. And it's an evenly matched male and female team, which we've never had before either.”

Hosted by Bow High School teacher Jon Cannon, Granite State Challenge features high school students answering questions in math, science, social studies, language arts, fine arts, current events, entertainment, sports, and New Hampshire topics. The quarterfinal will air on NHPBS and can also be streamed on the PBS App, the NHPBS YouTube channel, or at nhpbs.org/gsc.