On Wednesday,  Feb. 19, several of our local students competed at the long awaited Battle of the Books competition. After preparing for months, the teams all gathered in the Little Theater at DCHS and were put up to the test against other live high school competition, something that some of the younger teams have never faced. With the atmosphere tense and the competitors ready to go, the true battle began.

For the readers who aren’t familiar with the competition format, DCHS librarian Ms. Lawton has 150 pre-made questions that she puts up on the screen one by one, with the teams answering each individual question as a whole before moving on to the next question. There are frequent checks after every 25 questions to compare scores. After the first 25, the laughing stock of the event, the 765 Squatting Rhinos were astonishingly just behind the Dread Pirate BOB team with Quincy and the Girls close behind. Fast forward to halftime when tragedy struck.

Another rule about BOB is that only the top six teams stay after the half. Unfortunately, my team was nowhere near the top, so we were forced to leave. By this point, though, it was very clear that Dread Pirate BOB was going to be the victor, but the 765 Squatting Rhinos were only leading Quincy and the Girls by a mere 4 points.

The competition drudged on and by the time the final round rolled around, the Rhinos had lost their lead. It was back and forth between the two teams, and really it was becoming as heated as Battle of the Books can become. Many angry and spiteful glances were exchanged when the other team scored, and when it came time for the final tally, no one was sure who had won. On the count of three, both teams announced their scores. A dim sadness swept the crowd as the underdog 765 Rhinos fell short with 94 points, while Quincy and the Girls had 95. It was the closest match that had ever happened in BOB history.

“Life happens, and sometimes the calls don’t go your way. It doesn’t mean give up, it means… You get some calls and you don’t get some. We just didn’t tonight,” said 765 Squatting Rhino captain Jason Sterrett.  Dread Pirate BOB took home the trophy with ease, weighing in with a whopping 107 points.

Quincy and the Girls is comprised of Quincy Adams, Kate Layman, Miranda Edwards, Lacie Tomson and Laura Carbaugh. They will combine under the name Dread Pirate BOB with the original members, Jeßyka. Brown, Mekenzie Gear, Annika Hepe, Caydence McClain, and Emily Kender.

The combined team traveled to Carroll High School on Tuesday, Feb. 25 in hopes of bringing home an eighth county victory in a row to DCHS. After a hard fought battle, Dread Pirate BOB came out victorious with a score of 125-110