Los Gatos, March 9, 2023: The Los Gatos-Saratoga Union High School District is proud to announce that Saratoga High School (SHS) students have been awarded first place in the Stanford-hosted SLAC Regional Science Bowl Championship on February 11, 2023. After nearly a decade of placing 2nd or 3rd annually, SHS’s Team 1 will advance to the national tournament in Washington DC at the end of April.
A multi-grade collaboration, Team 1 is made up of 11th grader Advaith Avadhanam, 10th grader Skyler Mao, 12th grader Nilay Mishra, 12th grader Anthony Wang, and 12th grader Adam Xu. Competing among 23 schools in the Bay Area and 28 teams, Team 1 went undefeated and championed the tournament, an extremely difficult feat among competitive Bay Area high schools.
Saratoga High School’s Team 2 also did exceptionally well and placed in the Top 15, nearly qualifying for the double elimination stage. Team 2 is made up of 9th grader Quinn Gifford, 9th grader Arjun Krish, 11th grader Levana Lai, 11th grader Nikhil Mathihalli, and 9th grader Nolan Woo.
“The teamwork, practice behind the scenes, and the work of the teachers who served as advisors and coaches are to be commended,” shared Superintendent Bill W. Sanderson. “As a former science teacher, I know first-hand how difficult these competitions can be as our students compete against extremely high-performing schools. Congratulations to both of Saratoga High School’s teams and all the students who participated.”
The first time in person since the pandemic, the Regional Science Bowl is an academic competition that tests students’ knowledge in all areas of science and mathematics. Teams face off in a fast-paced question-and-answer format, being tested on a range of disciplines, including biology, chemistry, Earth science, physics, energy, and math. The Stanford-hosted SLAC Regional Science Bowl was won by Lynbrook High School in 2021 and Harker High School in 2020.
The United States Department of Energy’s Office of Science manages the National Science Bowl® and sponsors the finals competition which will be held April 27-May 1, 2023. The Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time.