Science Bowl showdown: Crescent Valley High School takes the title, heads to nationals

An anticipatory hush fell over a tense crowd at the University of Portland on Saturday, Feb. 28, as two Oregon high school teams faced off in the final round of BPA’s 34th annual Regional Science Bowl. After the final buzzer sounded, Crescent Valley High School from Corvallis emerged victorious. Crescent Valley held off Lake Oswego High School in the final round, ultimately beating out 38 other teams in the weekend competition, securing a coveted spot in the National Science Bowl in Washington, D.C. from April 30 to May 4. Portland high school Westview rounded out the competition, finishing third.

Timberline Middle School Team 1 from Redmond, Washington, took first place at this year’s middle school Regional Science Bowl on Feb. 7. Evergreen Middle School Team 1, also from Redmond, took second, and Willamette Valley Academy Team 1 from Beaverton, Oregon, went home with third.   

All 39 competing high school teams came to the University of Portland from public and private schools across Oregon and Washington to prove their knowledge in science, technology, biology, engineering and math at the second-largest science bowl in the nation. The bowl is an intense, Jeopardy-style tournament in which students buzz in to answer multiple choice and short-answer questions.

The high school Science Bowl weekend was made possible by nearly 140 volunteers who volunteered as officiants and guides to help run a series of STEM-related activities. Many BPA staff and previous competitors volunteer to run Science Bowl, supporting and encouraging a new generation of scientific minds. BPA sees this competition as an opportunity to nurture competitors’ passion for STEM-based careers and to inspire future innovators who may one day consider professions in the energy industry.

Both high school and middle school regional championship teams receive an all-expenses paid trip sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy to compete at the national event in the nation’s capital, where students enjoy several days of science activities, sightseeing and competitions.

For more information on Science Bowl and how to get involved next year, visit BPA’s Science Bowl webpage.