For the second straight year, a team from May River High School took the top spot in Beaufort County’s annual Academic WorldQuest Competition.

May River Team No. 1 finished first among nine competing teams from district high schools.  Teams from Beaufort High and Bluffton High came in second and third.

The winning May River team consisted of:  Amanda Angeles, Courtney Clavel, Blake Maynard, Annalise Sisco and alternate Joy Scheicher, who participated in four of the competition’s 10 rounds.  The team was coached by Nathan Campbell.

From left (front row), team members Courtney Clavel, Amanda Angeles, Joy Schleicher and Blake Maynard (not pictured, Annalise Sisco).  Back row, team coach Nathan Campbell.

Beaufort High Team No. 1 finished in second place.  Its members were May Harrelson, Chris Hoogenboom, Alex Mazzeo and Ben Kelley.  The coach was Debbie Kidd.

Bluffton High Team No. 2 finished in third place.  Its members were Hanna Giblin, Elaine Guo, Rebecca Keating and Caleb Kelly.  The coach was Pam Wolske.

The World Affairs Council of Hilton Head presented its seventh annual Academic WorldQuest Competition in partnership with the Beaufort County School District.  During Saturday’s competition at May River High, the teams faced a screen where multiple-choice questions were projected.  Teams had 60 seconds to answer each question.  Audience members sat behind the competing teams and were able to see the questions as they were projected on the screen.

Questions came from categories such as Current Events, Great Decisions, NAFTA, ASEAN at 50, Saudi Arabia, Cybersecurity, and India’s Bid for Global Leadership.

This year’s winning team from Beaufort County will travel to Washington for the national competition, said Carlton Dallas, a Hilton Head businessman who serves as the project director for WorldQuest in Beaufort County.

“This is a very talented group of scholars,” Dallas said.  “Extraordinarily so.  And we believe that with the support of their teachers and principal, their coach, their teammates and their parents, that they can represent Beaufort County extremely well in Washington and finish in the top three nationally.”

May River High’s winning team will receive a traveling trophy that will be displayed at their school for one year. The top three teams also received plaques.

The competition’s moderator was James Edward Alexander, a former broadcaster and attorney and a WACHH member. 

Academic WorldQuest is the flagship educational program of the national network of World Affairs Councils and is held annually in more than 40 U.S. cities.

Thanks to Jim Foster, Director of Communications, Beaufort County School District for the press release, photos, and video.