Science Bowl has hosted multiple mini-tournaments to allow students a chance to compete in a mock science competition during May.

These tournaments cover anything science related, making it a difficult task to study for. Because of the extremely competitive nature of Science Bowl and the difficulty of the subject material, many students are not able to make the team, so the mini-tournaments allow all students to get a glimpse of what it is like competing in the actual science bowl tournament.

To allow all students the opportunity to experience what it is like to be on  Science Bowl, senior Rae Holcomb, the captain of the team, organized mini-tournaments.

“I think it helps students learn more about how Science Bowl works and also exposes them to a lot of new science-related topics that they’ve maybe never heard of. It also helps people work together as a team,” sophomore and Science Bowl team member Shruti Chidambaram said.

By holding these tournaments, Science Bowl coach and science teacher Bryan Pacheco also hopes to get a preview of which students may be good to recruit next year to the team. He hopes to find new students who persevere and keep attending the meetings.

“Often, when ninth graders begin to come to our meetings, they find that they have a lot to learn, since upperclassmen have taken more science classes and have a lot more knowledge. Convinced that they will not be able to catch up, they stop coming to meetings. From these [mini-tournaments], we are able to show them what it is really like and let them have fun,” Pacheco said.

Overall, the response from participants has been positive as they were able to receive a very realistic experience of what the science bowl tournament is like.

“It was a very humbling experience, as I was able to see how much I didn’t know. Being in the mini-tournament was a really good experience,” sophomore and mini-tournament participant Imaani Choudhuri said.