CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Sherrard Middle School Team Two from Wheeling, Marshall County, won the West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History’s (WVDACH) 15th annual West Virginia State History Bowl Championship held Tuesday, April 30, at the Culture Center, State Capitol Complex, in Charleston.
Mountain View Middle School from Union, Monroe County, was the runner-up in the competition that included 24 teams of eighth graders from 19 middle schools in 11 counties across the state.
Emily Gatts of Sherrard Middle School Team Two was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player. The all-tournament team, made up of students who demonstrated exceptional knowledge and teamwork during the day-long tournament, included Madeline Baker, Mountain View Middle School; Tessa Abildso, South Middle School Team Two; Luke Fullen, Mountain View Middle School; Sebastian Calvert, Park Middle School Team Two; and Chase Abraham, Bible Center School.
The double-elimination tournament includes lightning rounds and team rounds featuring questions about state and county history, culture, heritage, tourism, geography, government and sports prepared by the staff of the department’s Archives and History section. Eighth graders in public, private and home-school education programs are eligible to compete on the four-person teams.
The championship team, Sherrard Middle School Team Two, included students Chase Fromhart, Connor Fromhart, Emily Gatts and Chloe Pickett.
The runner-up team, Mountain View Middle School, included students Madeline Baker, Luke Fullen, Peighton Griffith and Gabriella Houck.
The third-place team, South Middle School Team Two, included Tess Abildso, Rosa Bellisario, Maddie Mayle and Eliza Welsh.
The fourth-place team, South Middle Team One, included Elaina Beard, Avery Garvin, Henry Palfrey and Stella Snyder-Renfrew.
For more information, contact Ella Preece, tournament director and education coordinator for Archives and History, at (304) 558-0230 or Ella.S.Preece@wv.gov.
Competitors included the following teams:
Bible Center Middle School (Charleston, Kanawha County)
Cameron High School (Cameron, Marshall County)
Doddridge County Middle School (West Union, Doddridge County)
Edison Middle School (Parkersburg, Wood County)
Frankfort Middle School Team 1 (Ridgeley, Mineral County)
Huntington Middle School Team (Huntington, Cabell County)
Independence Middle School Team 1 (Coal City, Raleigh County)
Jackson Middle School (Vienna, Wood County)
Keyser Middle School Team 2 (Keyser, Mineral County) – Seventh Place
Keyser Middle School Team 2 (Keyser, Mineral County) – Eighth Place
Madison Middle School (Madison, Boone County)
Milton Middle School Team (Milton, Cabell County)
Mountain View Middle School (Union, Monroe County) – Second Place
Mountaineer Middle School (Morgantown, Monongalia County)
Park Middle School Team 1 (Beckley, Raleigh County)
Park Middle School Team 2 (Beckley, Raleigh County) – Sixth Place
Peterstown Middle School Team 2 (Peterstown, Monroe County) – Fifth Place
Sherrard Middle School Team 2 (Wheeling, Marshall County) – First Place
Sherrard Middle School Team 1 (Wheeling, Marshall County)
South Middle School Team 1 (Morgantown, Monongalia County) – Fourth Place
South Middle School Team 2 (Morgantown, Monongalia County) – Third Place
Summersville Middle School Team 1 (Summersville, Nicholas County)
Summersville Middle School Team 2 (Summersville, Nicholas County)
Winfield Middle School (Winfield, Putnam County)
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MEDIA: PHOTOGRAPHS:
Photo 1: 2024 History Bowl Champions Sherrard Middle School Team Two, (L to R) WVDACH Cabinet Secretary Randall Reid-Smith, Team Sponsor Dan Gatts, Emily Gatts, Chloe Pickett, Chase Fromhart, Connor Fromhart, and Delegate Jeffrey Stephens. Photograph by Stephen Brightwell, WVDACH.
Photo 2: 2024 History Bowl Most Valuable Player Emily Gatts from Sherrard Middle School. (L to R) WVDACH Cabinet Secretary Randall Reid-Smith, Emily, Team Sponsor Dan Gatts. Photograph by Stephen Brightwell, WVDACH.
