Mountain View team wins BPA Regional Science Bowl

PORTLAND — Students from Mountain View High School bested more than 60 teams from Oregon and Washington on Saturday at the Bonneville Power Administration’s 21st annual Regional Science Bowl.

Interlake High School of Bellevue took second place in the math and science competition Saturday at the University of Portland. A Salmon Creek team, made of home-schooled high-schoolers from Woodland and Vancouver, finished third.

By winning the regional competition, the team from Mountain View earns a berth in the Department of Energy’s National Science Bowl in Washington, D.C., later this spring. The Mountain View team is made up of Peter Lu, freshman, Rohi Nagari, junior, Marcus Kwon, junior, Jason Liu, sophomore, and not pictured, Waverley He, sophomore. Their coach is Les Wilson.

After training for months, teams of four or five students faced off in a round robin, quiz-show-style competition, followed by a double-elimination final. The questions were multiple-choice and short-answer. Topics included astronomy, biology, chemistry, energy, mathematics, physics, earth science, computer science and general science.

“We’re so thrilled to welcome these students and teachers every year, and to provide a forum where they can really shine,” said Cheri Benson, BPA Science Bowl coordinator, in a press release announcing the contest results. “Just as some of their peers may receive recognition on the athletic field or on the stage, this is where kids who love science come to demonstrate their skills.”

More than pride was on the line in Saturday’s competition. Students from the top three teams will also receive scholarship offers from 16 Washington and Oregon colleges and universities.

“There’s a practical application for us as well,” Benson added. “Whether it’s engineering, hydrology, biology, or accounting, utilities such as BPA need future employees with a skillset that’s based on math and science. So this battle of the brains is our Super Bowl.”

BPA has sponsored the Northwest Science Bowl since 1991. More than 150 BPA employees volunteer as moderators, judges and in other positions and have helped the event evolve into the largest regional science bowl in the nation.