2024 Academic Tournament Schedule

Week seven of the Academic Tournament season was the last night of the regular season.  Two perfect rounds and some strategic upsets set everything up for an exciting Finals night next week. Thomas Johnson had already locked up the regular season win, but there were close games as well as blowouts.  All this and more happened this past Friday night, February 16, 2024, at Frederick High School. 

Match 1: Bears 6, Hawks 21, Patriots 4

The first match put together the three winners from last week. Oakdale won the opening round with a single point and with three points in round two, had 4 points and a tie with the Patriots. Then the Hawks started to take control. Urbana took a dominating 7 of 10 points in the math round to take the lead. In the round, Urbana, Oakdale, and TJ combined for the only perfect math round of the season - 10 points earned out of 10 points possible! The Hawks won the special topic round four to push their lead to six and then ran away with the last round, picking up another 10 points. It was Urbana’s fifth win of the year, and they end the regular season in second position.

Match 2: Titans 14, Railroaders 16, Lions 10

The Brunswick team put together a nice comeback to grab their third win of the year. A well played first round had all three teams tied at 3. Round two gave the Titans a slight lead as they grabbed 5 points while the other teams earned 3 apiece. The Lions crept a little closer in the math round, gaining one point and trailing the Titans by 1, 8-7 with the Railroaders in shouting distance with 5. The specialty round on infectious diseases was well played, with every team gaining and after four rounds it was anybody’s game, with the Titans and Lions both having 10, and the Railroaders right behind with 8. The final round was dominated by Brunswick, and they scored 8 for their third win of the year. 

Match 3: Knights 7, Lancers 14, Cougars 15, Cadets 8

The final match of the night was tightly played throughout. The four teams combined for a perfect lightning round, 10 points earned for 10 questions, with Linganore taking the lead with 4 points. Frederick and Catoctin won round two by getting 6 points from 6 questions and a three way tie for the lead between the Lancers, Cougars, and Cadets all at 8. Frederick and Catoctin inched ahead in the third round, gaining 1 point each. In the math round, the Cadets drifted back, losing 3 points, while all three other teams stayed steady. The final round had every team scoring points and the Lancers pushed the Cougars to the very end, with both teams earning 6 points. It was Catocin’s fourth win of the season, and earned them the third seed in the tournament next week.

The FCPS Academic Team Tournament is in its 43rd year of competition. The teams play matches in five rounds. The first round is called the Lightning Round with 10 questions on a surprise topic. The second round is a team round, where without buzzers, teams attempt to answer six questions from six completely different fields. The third round is a ten question mix of math questions and regular academic trivia. The fourth round is a ten question specialty round with all questions on a topic announced beforehand, and the match finishes off with a twenty question grab bag round. Our next match will be the final match of the regular season. The match’s special topic is the American Revolution.  Matches are held in the auditorium at Frederick High on Friday nights in January and February. This week the first match will start  at 5:00 p.m., and it will be the quarter final two-team match between Frederick and Middletown.

Friday night’s game to watch: Well, all the matches should be good, but the final match of the night will be the three winners of the semifinal matches. Will the top three seeds make it through to the final or will there be an early round upset? Can TJ finish its great season with the trophy for the first time since 2009? Will the upset minded Lancers become the first repeat champs in 10 years? Can the second seeded Hawks win their first championship since their Covid year championship? It should be a fun finish to another great season. Special topic: American Revolution. See you at Frederick High School, Friday, February 23, at 5 p.m.

Week six of the Academic Tournament season saw a triple tie, one big win, and perhaps a finals night preview. The second to last night of the regular season featured wins, chills and thrills as Thomas Johnson locked up the regular season.  All this and more happened this past Friday night, February 9, 2024, at Frederick High School. 

Match 1: Knights 8, Titans 8, Cadets 7, Bears 8

The first match displayed how much fun this game can be when the teams are evenly matched. Oakdale jumped out to the lead, scoring 3 while the other teams stayed even.  Round two was won by Frederick, who went 6 for 6. Oakdale took round three as well, gaining two points. At the end of three the scores were Bears 9, Cadets and Titans 6, and Knights 3. In the specialty round, the Knights showed some research skills taking 2 points, and the Titans also added 1 to pull a little closer to the Bears. The last round was a wild finish. The Knights won the round with 2 points, the Bears slipped one, the Titans gained 2 and the Cadets gained 1 to finish the three way tie. While they have to split the points, and there were two sudden death questions to set up next week’s matches, a win is a win is a win. It was the first win of the year for the Knights and Titans, and the second win for the Bears.

Match 2: Railroaders 12, Lancers 6, Hawks 18

The second match had a tight feel to it, but Urbana outlasted the others to jump into second place in the county heading into the last night of the regular season. The Hawks took a slight lead of 3-2-1 over the Railroaders and Lancers respectively, after one round. All teams scored a 5 for 6 in the team round. Urbana took flight in the math round, scoring four points while Linganore managed one and Brunswick stayed even. The Railroaders actually won the last round, grabbing 5 points, but by then the Hawks were too far to catch. Urbana will play powerhouse Thomas Johnson next week to finish the regular season.

Match 3: Cougars 8, Lions 9, Patriots 11

In the final match of the night we saw a tight, well-played match, with each team winning a round outright. There were lots of early buzzes as the players tried to stretch their knowledge and skills to the utmost.  Catoctin won the first round on the surprise category of holidays. All three teams tied in a perfect second round - 6 for 6 for each team and 18 points for 18 questions in that team round. In the math round, the Patriots grabbed 3 points, and at the end of three TJ had 9, CHS had 9, and WHS had 6. The Lions roared on the specialty round, grabbing three points while the Patriots held steady and the Cougars backtracked by 1. Walkersville and Thomas Johnson were tied at 9 and Catoctin was just a sliver behind with 8 heading into the final round. Another round of very early buzzing and aggressive play gave the Patriots the victory, earning only 2 points total, but dominating the buzzers, and the Cougars and Lions could not get a run going. It was an entertaining match and clearly these three are all very strong teams. Congratulations to the Patriots, who mathematically won the regular season with this victory.

The FCPS Academic Team Tournament is in its 43rd year of competition. The teams play matches in five rounds. The first round is called the Lightning Round with 10 questions on a surprise topic. The second round is a team round, where without buzzers, teams attempt to answer six questions from six completely different fields. The third round is a ten question mix of math questions and regular academic trivia. The fourth round is a ten question specialty round, and the match finishes off with a twenty question grab bag round. Our next match will be the final match of the regular season. The match’s special topic is Infectious Diseases.  Matches are held in the auditorium at Frederick High on Friday nights in January and February. First match is at 6:00 p.m.

Friday night’s game to watch: Well, all the matches should be good, but maybe the third match of the night featuring TJ v UHS v OHS? One measure of a team’s strength is total questions answered, and the Hawks lead the league in this category. The Patriots, of course, have only lost a single match all season. Oakdale has posted two wins this season, so perhaps they can slip quietly ahead of the other two? It should be a fun finish to the regular season. Special topic: Infectious Diseases. See you at Frederick High School, Monday, February 5, at 5 p.m.

Week three of the Academic Tournament season was a makeup night for the snowed out match from two weeks ago. The night had everything, dominant teams, an upset, and tight matches. Many players are beginning to show just the right amount of patience, listening carefully to the question and buzzing in at just the right word. Linganore not only won their game, but joined the over 20 points club. All this and more happened this past Monday night, February 5, 2024, at Frederick High School. 

Match 1: Titans 9, Bears 10, Hawks 22

The first match was a very tight affair until the final round. The Titans took the early lead, leading the Bears 3-2 after one, with the Hawks yet to score. Urbana won round two with 5 of 6 points to trail the Bears and Titans by 1 point going into the math round. The Hawks won this third round to take a slight lead, but in the specialty round on Architecture, the Titans tied the Hawks at 10 with the Bears just 1 point behind. Then Urbana put on the pressure, scoring a season high 12 points (out of a possible 20!) in the final round to win going away. 

Match 2: Patriots 12, Cougars 17, Knights 9

Thomas Johnson’s perfect season came to an end as Catoctin won four of the five rounds. The Cougars started running right out of the gate, scoring 4 points in the opener to the Patriots 1 and the Knights yet to get on the board. A perfect 6 for 6 in round two for both TJ and Catoctin led to the math round, which the Patriots won by 1 point. The Architecture round was back and forth but the Cougars kept their lead by tying the Patriots with 2 points apiece. The Knights made the others take note by scoring 3 in the final round, but the Cougars took 4 and cruised to victory. It was an upset, but the Catoctin teams’ fine play this year should make the TJ team tip their cap and work to make a comeback next week.

Match 3: Cadets 13, Railroaders 7, Lions 21

For the second week in a row, the Lions scored over 20, and their consistent play made their lead seem larger than it actually was. Walkersville took the lightning round 6-3-1 over the Cadets and Railroaders respectively. It was the first perfect round of the night as the three teams combined for a perfect 10 for 10. Brunswick took round two, answering 5 of 6 questions correctly. The WHS math team continued its fine play, grabbing 6 points in the third round. The Cadets came back in round 4 on Architecture, and picked up 4 points, but the Lions rolled in round 5, picking up 4 points and the win. On Friday, the Walkersville team will have a tough game against the Patriots and the Cougars as the highest ranked teams duke it out in the third match.

Match 4: Lancers 26, Railroaders 9, Knights 5

In the final match the Lancers put up a huge number of points, winning every round, and setting up a confrontation next week with the match one winners, Urbana. The Lancers took 6 of 10 points in round one and they were off! Both Brunswick and Middletown scored 2 apiece to put up the second consecutive perfect round of the night. Linganore and Brunswick tied for round two with 5 more points, while the Knights had to settle for 3. The Linganore math team took round three, with three clean points to open up a good lead. The Knights showed some fight in the special round on Architecture, but by then Linganore’s lead was looking insurmountable. In the final round, the Lancers poured it on, scoring 10 points out of 20 questions.  Next week, the Lancer and Hawks will have an interesting matchup with the Titans hoping to spoil their victory.

The FCPS Academic Team Tournament is in its 43rd year of competition. The teams play matches in five rounds, the first round is called the Lightning Round with 10 questions on a surprise topic. The second round is a team round, where without buzzers, teams attempt to answer six questions from six completely different fields. The third round is a ten question mix of math questions and regular academic trivia. The fourth round is a ten question specialty round, and the match finishes off with a twenty question grab bag round. Our next match will be on Friday, February 9, beginning at 6:00 p.m. The makeup match’s special topic is 80s movies.  The matches are held in the auditorium at Frederick High on Friday nights in January and February. The first match starts at 6:00 p.m.

Monday night’s game to watch: Each match should be very competitive. In the third match of the night, the top three teams will face off. Catoctin vs. Thomas Johnson vs. Walkersville. When three strong teams fight it out, each point really counts. The winning team will have a leg up for the final night of the regular season.  Special topic: 80s movies. See you at Frederick High School, Friday, February 9, at 6 p.m.

Week five of the Academic Tournament season kept its star team going strong, and featured the top teams beginning to separate themselves from the pack. Walkersville joined the schools with over 20 points earned in a match, creating a five team club at the top led by Thomas Johnson (twice) and Urbana (twice). The other teams with more than 20 points are now Brunswick, Catoctin, and Walkersville. These five teams are also rated highest in the standings as we hurtle towards finals night, only three weeks away. All this and more happened this past Friday night, February 2, 2024, at Frederick High School. 

Match 1: Cadets 9, Hawks 21, Knights 3

The first match displayed an Urbana team coming into their own. The Hawks won every round of the match. The Knights did show their research skills by tying in the special round on African Geography, and the Cadets showed their toughness in round five with 6 points, but by then the Hawks’ lead was too great.  It marks the second time Urbana has broken the 20 point barrier, and they seem to be getting better week by week. Their current fourth place position in the standings might be misleading! 

Match 2: Patriots 12, Lions 9, Railroaders 8

Last week the Patriots team was challenged by the Hawks, and this week the first place Thomas Johnson team had all they could handle with Walkersville and Brunswick. TJ and Brunswick tied in the first round with 2 points apiece. Both the Lions and the Railroaders were a perfect 6 for 6 in round two, and Brunswick took the lead 8-6-6. The Lions won the math round and after three it was TJ 7, WHS 8 and BHS 9.  Round four was a furious early buzzing competition with the Patriots coming out on top, but only gaining two points. However, they had the lead and by dominating the buzzer in the final round they were able to control the play and stay undefeated for the season. Next Friday, the Patriots may tangle with the Lions and Cougars (#2 and #3 in the standings) in a further test of their pursuit of the perfect season. 

Match 3: Bears 14, Lancers 17, Titans 6

In the third match, Linganore picked up its second win of the season to vault over the challenging Titans and feisty Bears. Oakdale jumped out to the early lead in the first round, and kept it going with a perfect 6 for 6 in round two. The Bears math team was bested by the Lancers in round three, and Linganore was only 1 point behind heading into the special category round. In that round, Oakdale came back, scoring 3 points to the Lancers 1, and the Bears led by 3 heading into the final grab bag round. Linganore proved up to the challenge though, earning a solid 6 points to take the win. The Lancers will look to continue their winning ways against Brunswick and Middletown in the makeup match on Monday night.

Match 4: Cougars 14, Titans 9, Lions 21

In the final match of the night, the Lions were able to pay back the Cougars for their loss the previous week, and the Titans continued to show their developing skills. Walkersville jumped out to the early lead, winning 4 points to Catoctin’s 2 in the surprise category of breakfast cereals. The Titans came back from a disappointing first round to have a perfect 6 for 6 in round two, though the Lions tied their output to build a small 4 point lead. The math team for WHS dominated the third round, and when the Lions won the specialty round on African Geography, their 9 point lead would not be overcome. The Cougars stayed aggressive, and actually won the final round over the Lions 6-4, but by then Walkersville had its win in hand. Catoctin will have another big game next week against the undefeated Patriots with the Knights trying to play the role of spoiler.

The FCPS Academic Team Tournament is in its 43rd year of competition. The teams play matches in five rounds, the first round is called the Lightning Round with 10 questions on a surprise topic. The second round is a team round, where without buzzers, teams attempt to answer six questions from six completely different fields. The third round is a ten question mix of math questions and regular academic trivia. The fourth round is a ten question specialty round, and the match finishes off with a twenty question grab bag round. Our next match will be the make-up of week three on Monday, February 5, beginning at 5:00 p.m. The makeup match’s special topic is Architecture.  The matches are typically held in the auditorium at Frederick High on Friday nights in January and February. The first match starts at 6:00 p.m.

Monday night’s game to watch: In the fourth match on Monday night, Linganore and Brunswick will play each other with Middletown trying to play the spoiler.  Brunswick is slightly ahead in the standings, but Linganore has actually answered more questions correctly. Perhaps the Knights can sneak between and get their first win of the season? It should be a great way to start the week! Special topic: Architecture. See you at Frederick High School, Monday, February 5, at 5 p.m.

Week four of the Academic Tournament season kept its star team going strong, and featured teams beginning to separate themselves from the pack. It all happened this past Friday night at Frederick High School. Quick buzzing was the watchword of the night, as many teams had rounds where their score went backward from too aggressive buzzing. At the same time, at least two teams made big moves by playing aggressively. The special category of Women in Sport had a low total of points scored, probably due to this aggressiveness.  Three teams on the night scored over 20 points, and with another perfect round from one match, it is clear that some teams are starting to separate from the pack. Because of last week’s snow out, (makeup match: February 5 @ 5 p.m.) this was the third week of competition, but clearly these teams are in midseason form. Overall, it was a great third night of the early season. 

Match 1: Titans 9, Railroaders 10, Lancers 9

The first match was a back and forth affair, with the three teams separated by 2 points heading into the final round. Linganore jumped out to an enormous lead of 7-1-0 over the Titans and Railroaders after one round. But Tuscarora scored a perfect second round and Brunswick’s math team grabbed half the points available in the third round to get closer. The specialty round was wild with quick buzzers and backwards scores. At the end of four Brunswick had 9, Tuscarora had 8, and Linganore had 7. Anybody’s game!  Each team squeezed a single point in the final round and  the Railroaders had their 2nd win in the season.  While the Lancers were disappointed after their strong start, the Titans must be encouraged to play so strongly against tough competition.

Match 2: Cadets 3, Hawks 19, Patriots 20

The Patriots continued their stellar play and stayed undefeated, but the Hawks gave them all they could handle. TJ built a lead of 3 points after one round, and both Urbana and Thomas Johnson scored a perfect 6 for 6 in round two. The Hawks inched closer during the math round, finishing down by two, and gained another point during a strong specialty round, where they scored 3 to the Patriot’s 2. After four rounds, it was TJ 16 and Urbana 15. Frederick’s young team had trouble getting control of the buzzer, but did manage three positive rounds, and did squeeze in between the two dominant teams, as Urbana and TJ went after each other in round 5. When the dust cleared, both had scored 4 points to give TJ its closest margin of victory this year. The Patriots are the only undefeated team at 4-0. 

Match 3: Bears 7, Lions 17, Cougars 20

In the third match, Catoctin picked up its second win in the young season to vault into second place in the county. The first round was the only perfect round of the night, with Walkersville earning 4 points and Catoctin earning 6 in a 10 point round. The Lions squeaked out a win in round two, earning 5 points but lost ground to the Cougars strong math team in round three. Walkersville came back and grabbed the lead in the special round, earning 3 points as the Cougars went backward. At the end of four, it was Lions 13, Cougars 12, and Bears 5.  And then Catoctin got on a roll, winning 8 out of the final 20 points to pull out the win. Catoctin became just the third team to crack the 20 point barrier this year. Next week, the Lions will get a rematch against the Cougars with the Titans as the third team.

Match 4: Knights 6, Cougars 12, Hawks 22

In the final match of the night, Urbana may still have been smarting over their single point loss to TJ earlier in the night because they became the fourth different team this season to break the 20 point barrier. The Hawks never trailed in this one, winning four of five rounds. Urbana took half of the points available in the opening round, scored a 6 for 6 in round two, and then lost round three, but only by a single point. Catoctin did their best by winning that third round and tying the specialty round. This round was the best played round four of the night, with the three teams gaining 7 points of the 10 available, but the final round was all Urbana as they picked up 7 points and broke 20 for the first time this year. 

The FCPS Academic Team Tournament is in its 43rd year of competition. The teams play matches in five rounds, the first round is called the Lightning Round with 10 questions on a surprise topic. The second round is a team round, where without buzzers, teams attempt to answer six questions from six completely different fields. The third round is a ten question mix of math questions and regular academic trivia. The fourth round is a ten question specialty round, and the match finishes off with a twenty question grab bag round. Next week’s special round topic: African Geography.  All matches are held in the auditorium at Frederick High on Friday nights in January and February. The first match starts at 6:00 p.m.

Next week’s game to watch: Walkersville will play twice next week, and both games should be interesting. In match two, the Lions will try to knock out the undefeated Patriots, with the strong Railroaders team ready to steal it from both of them. In the last match of the night, Catoctin will try to show it was no fluke beating Walkersville the previous week. The third team in that match was Tuscarora, who just missed their first win of the season last week - perhaps they’ll taste victory by being overlooked? It should be a great week five! Special topic: African Geography. See you at Frederick High School, February 2, at 6 p.m.

Week two of the Academic Tournament season established a star team and featured teams showing comeback grit. It all happened this past Friday night at Frederick High School. In several close games, some teams pushed their knowledge with early buzzing, which sometimes worked, and sometimes didn’t. The special category of Fast Food had the teams confident, though the overall points scored were low, with no teams breaking the 20 point barrier. Just like last week, one game had impeccable play with a perfect round. Overall, it was a great second night of the early season. 

Match 1: Titans 12, Lions 19, Knights 7

The first match of the night had a classic Walkersville feel.  The Lions were not dominant, but they did win every round, carefully built a lead, and held it through to the end. Walkersville won the first round by one over Tuscarora and two over Middletown, and round two scored a perfect 6 for 6 while the Titans and Knights both scored 5. Walkersville shined in the math round, scoring 4 for their largest win of any round, and then scraped a 1 point win in the special category round. With the Lions ahead by 7,  the still fighting Titans attempted a comeback, but the Lions held on to win the match.  

Match 2: Cadets 11, Cougars 16, Lancers 10

The night’s second match watched Catoctin grab its first win of the season in a competitive back and forth match. Catoctin jumped out to the early lead in the lightning round, leading the Cadets and Lancers 5-2-1 after one. The Lancers won round two with a perfect 6 for 6, while the Cadets and Cougars settled for 5. Catoctin squeezed past the Lancers in the math round, gaining 3 points while Linganore gained 2. In the specialty round on Fast Food, the Cadets showed their research chops by gaining 5 points and the lead. At the end of four rounds, it was Cadets 13, Cougars 12, and Lancers 10. Round five was all Catoctin, earning 4 points as Frederick and Linganore could not get any momentum. Catoctin follows up this win playing the Patriots next week in what could be a very interesting game.

Match 3: Patriots 18, Railroaders 8, Hawks 12

Urbana showed some fight early in this match, but Thomas Johnson put together a brilliant final round to win a tight contest. The opening round was perfect by the three teams who combined for 10 points out of 10 questions - the only perfect round of the night. The Hawks jumped out to a 3 point lead after two rounds, winning the first round by 3 and putting up a perfect round two, 6 for 6. Round four was unusual in that no team advanced in scoring; the scores were the exact same after round four as they were after round three, TJ 9, Brunswick 9 and Urbana 12.  The final round was all Patriots as they grabbed 9 points. Next week TJ will play Catoctin and Middletown in the second match hoping to continue their unbeaten streak.

Match 4: Bears 9, Patriots 12, Lancers 2

The final match of the evening was a tightly contested low-scoring affair, a fitting fight between the three winners from opening night. Quick buzzing in the lightning round gave Thomas Johnson a slight lead of 2 points after one round. In the second round, the Lancers and Patriots both scored 5 to the Bears’ 4. Oakdale's math team continued to impress, winning a furious math round with no further points but the Patriot’s aggressive play worked against them as they moved backwards. After three rounds it was Bears 4, Patriots 3 and Lancers 3. TJ began to take control during the specialty round on Fast Food, scoring 4 points, and then taking a 1 point win in the last round over the charging Bears. The Patriots are a perfect 3-0 after two weeks, and have established themselves as the team to beat early in the season.

The FCPS Academic Team Tournament is in its 43rd year of competition. The teams play matches in five rounds, the first round is called the Lightning Round with 10 questions on a surprise topic. The second round is a team round, where without buzzers, teams attempt to answer six questions from six completely different fields. The third round is a ten question mix of math questions and regular academic trivia. The fourth round is a ten question specialty round, and the match finishes off with a twenty question grab bag round. Next week’s special round topic: Architecture.  All matches are held in the auditorium at Frederick High on Friday nights in January and February. The first match starts at 6:00 p.m.

Next week’s game to watch: All four games next week should be interesting. In game one, will Oakdale get its second win of the season and begin to establish itself as a team to watch or will the Titans or Hawks get their first win? In the second match, can TJ continue their winning ways against the surging Cougars, or can the Knights play spoiler? Brunswick and Walkersville will both be looking for their second win in the third match, but maybe Frederick will get its first “W”? Finally, in the nightcap, three teams that have had highs and lows already in the young season will try to end the night on a high. It should be a great third week! Special topic: Architecture. See you at Frederick High School, January 19 at 6 p.m.

Week one of the Academic Tournament season started strong on Friday night at Frederick High School. Two teams dominated their matches, and many teams seemed in mid-season form on opening night. The new policy of announcing the specialty round categories before the summer enabled students more time for study and it showed. The Dystopian Fiction round was full of quick buzzers, and clearly teams had done their homework. Overall, it was a great first night to start the season. 

Match 1: Lions 14, Hawks 3, Lancers 15

Probably the most anticipated match of the night began dramatically with Linganore racing to the lead 5-0-0 after the first round. Walkersville won round two with a perfect 6 of 6, and then nearly pulled even with the Lancers, gaining one point in the math round to pull within 1.  In round three Linganore widened their lead by one to lead 11-9-4 over the Lions and the Hawks, respectively.  The Hawks struggled to get control of the buzzer against Walkersville, the biggest team in the county, and Linganore, last year’s champion. The final round went back and forth, and Walkersville won the round but not the match, as the Lancers held on to show they will be defending their title with vigor. Fans look forward to seeing if Linganore can keep the win streak going next week, when they will play twice in one night.

Match 2: Bears 10, Railroaders 23, Cougars 15

The second match of the night featured tight focused play from all three teams. The surprise topic of farming led to a rough start by the teams, but Brunswick had a slight lead after round one. For the only time in the night, all three teams were perfect in round two, going 6 for 6. All three teams were still in it as Oakdale showed some math power tying Brunswick in the next round and after three the Railroaders had a slight lead 11-8-8. In the last two rounds though, they put distance between themselves and the other two, scoring 12 points to finish with the second highest point total of the night. Fans will be eager to see if Brunswick can continue their winning ways next week in what appears to be a tough match with Urbana and Thomas Johnson.

Match 3: Cadets 8, Patriots 28, Titans 12

The Thomas Johnson team threw down the gauntlet and declared itself the team to beat in this opening match. The Patriots won every round to finish with the most points of any team for the night. Leading 6-1-1 after one, Thomas Johnson didn’t look back. All three teams combined to show their strong research skills in the specialty round,  answering 9 of 10 correctly. The Titans even tied the Patriots in round four, but by then the lead was too great to overcome. Next week Thomas Johnson will play two matches, and their competition is well warned that the Patriots are head of the class in first position.

Match 4: Knights 9, Cadets 7, Bears 13

The Oakdale team continued the growth shown last season by winning their first match. The match went back and forth, and the tight scoring led teams to try buzzing early which led to a lower overall score for the game. The Bears won the first round 5-2-2, but the Cadets came back winning round two, scoring 5 points. The Cadets pulled within two of the Bears in the math round, and still only trailed by 3 after the specialty round. The Knights won the final round, but the Bears played smart and steady to win by 4. Oakdale will try to continue the ascent up the rankings next week playing defending champ Linganore and this week’s high scorer Thomas Johnson.  

The FCPS Academic Team Tournament is in its 43rd year of competition. The teams play matches in five rounds, the first round is called the Lightning Round with 10 questions on a surprise topic. The second round is a team round, where without buzzers, teams attempt to answer six questions from six completely different areas. The third round is a ten question mix of math questions and regular academic trivia. The fourth round is a ten question specialty round, and the match finishes off with a twenty question grab bag round. Next week’s special round topic: Fast Food.  All matches are held in the auditorium at Frederick High on Friday nights in January and February. The first match starts at 6:00 p.m.

Next week’s game to watch: Both match three and match four will be fun to watch. We will see if Thomas Johnson can continue its strong start against the Brunswick team, which also had a strong first match, and perennial power Urbana. The fourth match will pit all three of this week’s winners in a single match - TJ v. Oakdale v. Linganore.  It should be a great second week! Special topic: Fast Food. See you at Frederick High School, January 12 at 6 p.m.