Holly Pond Scholar’s Bowl Team
CULLMAN COUNTY – Two Cullman County high schools will be sending teams to the Alabama Scholastic Competition Association's state small high school scholar’s bowl tournament at Hoover High School in Hoover on Feb. 25. Holly Pond went 4-1 and defeated Good Hope to win its pool at the regional tournament at Wallace State on Jan. 13. Good Hope, though losing to Holly Pond in head-to-head competition, had a higher overall point count at the end of the tournament and qualified for the state competition as a wildcard team.
Morris Williams, coach of the Holly Pond team, expressed pride in his students, saying, "For me personally, I am ecstatic for the team to advance; but especially for the students and for the school. We have never gone to state before; we have done well at times, but this is definitely a high point. The biggest thing I think I want people to know is that there are some really great kids doing great things in the county schools, and especially at Holly Pond. I do not take any credit, nor do I want any credit. It is the kids that play and answer the questions; my role is just to try a little guidance at times and try to help a little. It is their victory."
Team Captain Heather Mann added, "We have definitely been the underdogs for the past few years, so being able to do this is really an amazing opportunity!"
The Holly Pond Scholar’s Bowl team is made up of: Heather Mann (captain), Allie Smith, Mackenzie Weaver, Hunter Mann, Colton Patterson, Caitlyn Patterson and Tyler Dover.
Coach David Hulsey shared this about the Good Hope team, "Our scholar’s bowl team finished tied for 11th in Nationals last year in Chicago. We finished second to East Lawrence in small school state last year, after beating them in district. This year's team is improving daily to try to achieve what last year's team did. We also had an individual that finished in the top 10 nationally last year. We had to qualify for state this year as a wildcard, as we dropped our last game in pool play to Holly Pond (200-195). We're proud of Holly Pond also going, as we have two entrants from our county! We still go as one of eight teams to qualify statewide for 1A-4A. Looking forward to the challenge."
Members of the Good Hope Scholar’s Bowl Team are: Jacob Smith (captain), Madison Lowery (captain), Angel Cortes, RJ Bynum, Daniel Price, Madalyn Williams and James McWhorter.
Eight teams from around the state qualified in three regional tournaments:
- Holly Pond HS
- Good Hope HS
- T.R. Miller HS……….Brewton, Escambia County
- Ashville HS…………..Ashville, St. Clair County
- East Lawrence HS….Trinity, Lawrence County (2016 state champion)
- Lamar County HS….Vernon, Lamar County
- Elkmont HS…………..Elkmont, Limestone County
- Woodland HS………..Woodland, Randolph County
Additionally, Cullman, Good Hope and Hanceville Middle Schools qualified on Jan. 28 for the state middle school tournament on Feb. 25. Look for our story on them soon.
Copyright 2017 Humble Roots, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
