Lakewood's Academic Challenge Team Dominates TV Competition

LAKEWOOD, OH - The Lakewood High School Academic Challenge team is dominating the competition this year. The team appeared on the Academic Challenge quiz TV show on Feb. 18 and tallied the highest team total of the season, with 750 points. By comparison, Valley Forge High School, the runner-up on the Feb. 18 edition, scored 360.

If you've never seen Academic Challenge on TV, no worries. The format is this: three teams, composed of three high school students each, answer a variety of questions, receiving points for their answers. Topics include math, science, history, and current events. The team with the most points wins.

The Lakewood High School team that appeared on the Feb. 18 show included seniors Ian Bell, Brian Donahoe, and Evan Suttell. They obliterated Valley Forge and Euclid high schools.

In addition to winning the Feb. 18 show, the LHS team also qualified for a set of grants from Westfield Insurance. At the end of the season, the show will tally up the highest scoring teams on the program. The three highest scorers will then appear for a Championship match, which will air June 17, 2017.

At this point, Lakewood has the highest score by a wide margin, 145 points. There are 16 weeks left in the season. Once the show concludes, Westfield will dole out $20,000 in grants to the top 10 scoring teams and their respective high schools.

In addition to their televised success, the LHS Academic Challenge team is also dominating conference competitions. The team has been invited to a national tournament (the fifth straight year they've been invited to such a tournament). In addition to the televised members of the team, the LHS Academic Challenge squad includes juniors Kevin Cush, Abe Dalisky, Calvin Dolatowski, Erika Hakko, Seamus Holian, Damian Jouriles, Veronica Lee, and Andrew VanAuken; sophomores John Bobik, Nick Cleary, Tim Daso, Michael Ferrone, Frank Llesay, Nikoy Norris; freshmen Evan Bell, Aidan Bohac, Alice King and Kathryn Oleksa. The team advisers are Peter Petto and Bob Sedlak.

Photo from Rick Uldricks, Patch