BRMS in Top 16 at National Science Bowl

Students at Bridgewater-Raritan Middle School ranked as one of the top 16 teams in the country at the National Science Bowl in Washington D.C.

Under the direction of science coordinator and team coach Rob Ambrose, eighth graders Akash Kumar, Brian Wei and Patrick Wu, and seventh graders Jerry Kong and Irene Qiao participated in the science bowl after qualifying to attend at the regional competition held at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory.

“After winning the New Jersey Regional Science Bowl in February, the team began practicing and preparing for the National Science Bowl, which took place in Washington D.C.,” Ambrose said.

The team practiced at least three times a week until the competition, Ambrose said, which took place at the end of April.

The trip was paid for entirely by the Department of Energy, Ambrose said, because they won the regional competition.

During the competition, students stayed at the National 4-H Youth Conference Center in Chevy Chase, Maryland.

During the first two days of the bowl, Ambrose said, students had the chance to tour Washington D.C., including stops at the national monuments and a visit to the National Mall and Smithsonian museums.

The team competed in seven matches at the beginning of the competition, finishing with a record of seven wins and one loss. They then competed in the Double Elimination team against 15 other remaining teams.

“Although the team was eliminated early in the Double Elimination, their matches were well-played and hard-fought,” Ambrose said. “Their top 16 ranking puts them in the top 1.5 percent of all middle school teams nationwide.”

In addition, Ambrose said, the team designed a model electric car, which competed in the bowl’s Electric Car Competition.

Ambrose said the students worked very hard to get as far as they did.

“Their accomplishments were the result of their hard work, dedication to academic achievement and scientific knowledge,” he said.