On January 29, eleven Colonial Middle School (CMS) students competed in the final rounds of the school's 2019 National Geographic Geography Bee. Each contestant won his or her team competition, which meant there was a representative from all of the sixth, seventh and eighth grade teams on the stage.
The finalists included:
- Scott Ash (6-Blue)
- Phillip Bower (6-Red)
- Chris Condra (6-Green)
- Mallory Markow (7-Blue)
- Zakhar Paulosky (7-Red)
- Andrew Walters (7-Green)
- Natalie Wynne (7-Orange)
- David Epstein (8-Green)
- Jordan Kanze (8-Red)
- Zane Mannings (8-Orange)
- Jordan Quirus (8-Blue)
"This year, the eleven finalists competed in one of the tightest contests in school history," said eighth grade history teacher George Hankins. "It was exciting to see more than half the contestants make it deep into the final rounds of the tournament. You hated to see any of them lose."
The participants were asked a series of questions about United States and world geography in the auditorium in front of their peers. After seven rounds, the two finalists were eighth graders David Epstein and Jordan Kanze. In the Championship Round, David Epstein prevailed and won this year's competition by correctly identifying Sweden as the most populous Scandinavian country.
"It was hard. Some of the questions were things I haven't heard about," said David. "I like how it's straightforward facts."
From here, David will now complete a 70-question online test to determine if he meets the requirements to participate at the Pennsylvania State Geography Bee in March.
