Wayzata Quiz Bowl, a competitive, fast-paced trivia program, is working tirelessly around the clock to prepare for their upcoming fall season. After weeks of strenuous tryouts and late-night study sessions, players are feeling confident and ready to tackle the torrent of tournaments coming their way.
Background
Quiz Bowl consists of long-form questions, called “tossups,” regarding topics such as literature, history, science, art, geography, pop culture, and more. The tossups are read by a moderator to two teams of four players each. Players answer by “buzzing in” with a handheld button, which either adds or subtracts from the team’s score depending on if they answer correctly. A string of three bonus questions read only for that particular team follows a successful buzz.
The program, led by teacher-coach Abigail Genise and Student President Tanush Thimmasani, has enjoyed much success in recent seasons. They’ve taken home the state title for four consecutive years, and placed thirteenth in the 2025 High School National Championship Tournament.
Quiz Bowl tryouts, which consisted of four weekly sessions and concluded in mid-October, pitted over fifty players from across all grades against one another to compete for the coveted spots. Students were sorted into rooms of ten and tackled ninety-six tossups per session, which were tracked by subject and answer speed. On October 20, after weeks of anticipation and excitement, ten teams were officially named by the leadership staff, a group of experienced players responsible for running the program.
Preparation
To prepare for the upcoming fall tournaments, players are reviewing their favorite subjects tirelessly, both independently and through the program itself.
“Teams will have practice scrimmages against each other every Thursday,” noted Thimmasani. “We hope [the scrimmages] will help our members get in form and ready to play.”
In addition to team practices, players also study on their own time. According to Thimmasani, “students will often read Wikipedia, read practice questions, or even use online applications to play against friends.”
Sophomore Cristobal Iturra Errazuriz added, “I pay attention to possible answers for questions in school, and occasionally watch media on a topic I find interesting and might be asked about.” Common favorites among players also include online question-reading sites and flash cards.
Studying for Quiz Bowl often includes extensive amounts of note-taking, both during practice and while reading from websites. Players typically have a notebook dedicated to the club and use it to record important names, facts, and other information they hear while playing. Flash cards are also popular, with participants often using them to drill on recurring topics, especially those they choose to specialize in.
Benefits of Quiz Bowl
Though Quiz Bowl is an extracurricular activity many compete in out of personal enjoyment, there are numerous academic benefits to it as well. Students have cited faster thinking and greater homework efficiency as skills they’ve derived from competition.
“It’s helped me get closer to friends and form study groups,” sophomore William Ye remarked. Freshman Apurva Bharadwaj shared a similar perspective, noting, “It helps me comprehend material in class better and know small details of something we are covering.”
Many have also cited improved school performance, with the knowledge learned in Quiz Bowl providing a strong background for class material, especially topics covered in AP and honors courses.
The program benefits students in other ways as well. “Participating in quiz bowl helps our members realize what ways of studying work best for them,” Thimmasani stated. “Our members learn how to work collaboratively with each other, and how to represent themselves and our school.”
Errazuriz added, “It is a great way to meet new people with academic interest that you can later socialize with in future classes.” Students interviewed noted that they have formed lasting bonds with others who share similar interests in trivia.
Players’ Favorite Aspects
Fascination with learning and knowledge manifests itself in many different ways among players, who each have their own favorite aspects of the organization.
“My favorite part is the sense of victory when you win against an opposing team who was beating you most of the game,” Errazuriz stated. “It feels great when you and your team make a comeback from a seemingly impossible game.”
Sophomore Harold Fang shared his perspective as well, saying, “I get to buzz and answer questions, and it gets me thinking quickly.” Players often enjoy the competitive, exciting nature of the game.
For Thimmasani, though, enjoyment from the club is derived mainly from helping players expand their knowledge and encouraging personal development. “I love seeing our members grow, both as Quiz Bowl players and as people,” he stated. “My goal as a leader is for people to leave Wayzata Quiz Bowl as better versions of themselves.”
Conclusion
In its twenty-plus years of existence, the program has experienced a considerable amount of growth and expansion. “Our membership count has gone up significantly, but more than that, we have done a lot to develop our club over the last couple of years,” said Thimmasani. “We have implemented a new ‘teaching leader’ position, whose job is to use their experience in quiz bowl to teach new members how to play.” The senior added, “Ms. Genise has really been a positive force for our entire club, helping us recruit new members… the future is bright.”
With a multitude of tournaments on the horizon, the Wayzata Quiz Bowl team has been working tirelessly to prepare for competition. Through scrimmages, reading, and practicing, they’ve gained some valuable experiences and skills they’ll carry with them both into the fall season and for the rest of their lives.
