MANSFIELD – Sixteen area high schools participated in this year’s Fall Academic Challenge League, a fully virtual competition showcasing quick thinking, teamwork and academic excellence.
After several weeks of online matchups, Lexington High School captured first place in the Varsity A Bracket, earning a league-high 227 points.
Mansfield Christian School claimed the top spot in the Varsity B Bracket with an impressive 263 points.
Lexington’s team included Alex T. (co-captain), Ben W. (co-captain), Ari C., with alternates Gianna B. Asher P. and Maddie W.
Mansfield Christian’s team members were Elijah Martin, Logan Wilson, Grady Heichel, Adam Ebersole and Logan Gehrisch.
Lexington continued its strong performance in the junior varsity division, winning the JV League Championship, followed by Colonel Crawford, which secured second place.
Lexington JV’s team included Gianna B. (co-captain), Asher P. (co-captain), Maddie W. (co captain), Ella R. and Jesse S., with team manager Marissa R.
Colonel Crawford’s team was made up of Isaac Stirm, Wesley Williams, AJ Adkins, Jax Rike, Grayson Grove, Emily Schwenning, Meadow Achberger, James Schwenning and Brynsley Kitchen.
League results
Varsity Division A teams: Hillsdale, Madison, Colonel Crawford, Lexington, Buckeye Central, Highland, Northmor and Ontario.
Varsity Division B teams: St. Peter’s, Crestview, Clear Fork, Ashland, Loudonville, Mount Gilead, Galion and Mansfield Christian.
Lexington’s team was made up of Alex T. (co-captain), Ben W. (co-captain), Ari C., with alternates Gianna B. Asher P. and Maddie W.
Mansfield Christian was comprised of Elijah Martin, Logan Wilson, Grady Heichel, Adam Ebersole.
The junior varsity Academic Challenge league only competed in one bracket. The teams were Loudonville, Ontario, Highland, Lexington, Clear Fork, Northmor, Colonel Crawford, Buckeye Central, Mansfield Christian, Crestview, Mt. Gilead, Ashland, Galion and Madison.
Lexington JV’s team members were Gianna B. (co-captain), Asher P. (co-captain), Maddie W. (co-captain), Ella R. and Jesse S., with team manager Marissa R.
Colonel Crawford’s were Isaac Stirm, Wesley Williams, AJ Adkins, Jax Rike, Grayson Grove, Emily Schwenning, Meadow Achberger, James Schwenning and Brynsley Kitchen
The season concluded with a two-day Fall Academic Challenge Tournament, held in person and featuring 10 schools.
Both Varsity and JV teams were split into two competitive brackets, with teams answering questions across a wide range of academic subjects.
The wall-score results reflect another year of outstanding competition, spirited collaboration and academic achievement among students across the region.
The Academic Challenge program continues to provide opportunities for students to excel academically, demonstrate leadership and represent their schools with pride.
Day 1 results
Tournament Day 1 Results
Varsity bracket A teams: Madison, Ontario, Mt. Gilead, Mapleton and Clear Fork.
Varsity bracket B teams: Mansfield Christian, Ashland, Hillsdale, Mt. Vernon and Plymouth.
For varsity, the top team for each bracket (Madison for bracket A and Mansfield Christian for bracket B) faced off in the final: Madison took the Championship with a score of 44 to Mansfield Christian’s 38.
Madison was composed of Chris Lucas, Cam Porter, Bryce Tudor and Kayley Stone. The members of Mansfield Christian’s team were Elijah Martin, Logan Wilson, Grady Heichel and Adam Ebersole.
JV bracket A teams: Ashland, Ontario A., Mt. Gilead A., Mansfield Christian and Clear Fork JV bracket B teams: Mt. Vernon, Ontario B., Mt. Gilead B., Mapleton and Madison/
Ontario A. and Mt. Vernon were the two bracket winners for JV, but due to time constraints, we were unable to play the final round as schools had to get back before the end of the day.
Ontario A. was comprised of Saoirse Dove, Mason Egner, Luke Genders, Stelian Kruer, Yuchen Lin, Yuka Mori, Alexis Swank and Angel Tan.
Day 2 results
Tournament Day 2 Results:
Varsity bracket A teams: Lexington, Buckeye Central, Loudonville, Colonel Crawford and St. Peter’s.
Varsity bracket B teams: Tiffin, Highland, Crestview, Northmor and Galion.
The top team for each bracket (Buckeye Central for bracket A and Tiffin for bracket B) faced off in the final: Tiffin won the varsity contest 49 to 33 against Buckeye Central.
Tiffin’s team members were Christian Keefe, Kenton Fell, Amanda Stalsworth, Ace Madden, Amelia Miller, Angela Liu, Katie Witte, Lily Perez and Lyra Kin. Buckeye Central was made up of Jake Rafferty, Titus Beeson, Blaise Metzger, Sam Auck and Charlotte Betts.
JV bracket A: Lexington, Highland, Buckeye Central, Loudonville A. and Galion.
JV bracket B: Colonel Crawford, Loudonville B., Crestview, St. Peter’s and Northmor.
On the Junior varsity side, Lexington won a condensed Lighting Round against Colonel Crawford for the final where only 20 questions were asked due to time constraints.
The final score was 14 to 12 (points are doubled). Lexington was composed of Asher P., Maddie W., Jesse S. and Ella R. Colonel Crawford was made up of Isaac Stirm, Wesley Williams, A.J. Adkins, Jax Rike, Grayson Grove, Emily Schwenning, Meadow Achberger, James Schwenning and Brynsley Kitchen.