(whistle trilling) (upbeat music) ♪ Go (whistle trilling) (upbeat music) - Welcome to this season of WVIA's "Scholastic Scrimmage".

I'm your host, Paul Lazar.

"Scholastic Scrimmage" is a question and answer competition, featuring high school students from across the WVIA viewing area.

In each program, two schools will compete in a single elimination tournament for a chance to win 1000, 3000, or $5000.

Tonight's match features Wyoming Valley West versus Hanover Area.

Representing Wyoming Valley West are Xin Wang, Elijah Saroda, William Hebda, and Emily Bolen.

Their alternate is Evangeline Dick, and their advisor is Douglas Shook.

Representing Hanover Area are Caitlyn Vigorito, Kayla Giannelli, Lucas Ballas, and Preston Desorda.

Their alternates are Amelia Garron Kevich and Emma Schleman.

And their advisors are Joanne Osborne and Carl Daubert.

"Scholastic Scrimmage" is a game of rapid recall of factual information.

So let's take a moment and review the rules.

The first team to buzz in will have an opportunity to answer a tossup question.

Correct answers to these questions are awarded 10 points and that team will then receive a five point bonus question.

If that tossup answer is incorrect, no points will be deducted, but the question will then rebound to the other team.

If the other team answers correctly, they'll be given the tossup points but will not receive a bonus question.

Let's get the game started with this tossup question.

What state which in 2025 announced it would be the first to offer a universal free pre-K childcare is led by Michelle Lujan Grisham from Santa Fe?

(answer buzzer beeps) Kayla, Hanover Area.

- Florida.

- Is incorrect.

Rebound to Valley West.

(answer buzzer beeps) Emily.

- California.

- Nope, that state is New Mexico.

All right, let's go to our next toss up.

What mammals include data about the color of predators in their altruistic warnings to kin live in namesake towns and are rodents, not canines.

(time buzzer beeps) Those are prairie dogs.

Okay, let's go to our next tossup.

What novel features physician Roger Chillingworth who is revealed to be the lost- (answer buzzer beeps) - Kayla, Hanover area.

- "The Scarlet Letter".

- "The Scarlet Letter" is correct, and here's your bonus.

What influential German art school sought to unite art, architecture, and design training under the direction of founder Walter Gropius?

(time buzzer beeps) That is Bauhaus.

Okay, let's go to our next tossup.

What West African country whose defacto national language is Krio has its capital at Freetown and takes its name from the Lion Mountains?

(answer buzzer beeps) William, Valley West.

- Liberia.

- Is incorrect.

Rebound to Hanover Area.

(answer buzzer beeps) Preston.

- Ghana.

- Nope, that is Sierra Leone.

Okay, let's go to our next tossup.

What country's independence was the subject of the blood telegram was opposed by operation Search Light and caused Pakistan to lose its eastern lands?

(answer buzzer beeps) Preston, Hanover Area.

- India.

- Is incorrect.

Rebound to Valley West.

(time buzzer beeps) That country is Bangladesh.

Okay, here's our next tossup question.

What mythological group whose ranks include Melpomene and Terpsichore, represented fields like tragedy and dance with its nine inspiring goddesses?

(answer buzzer beeps) Elijah, Valley West.

- The Muses.

- Is correct.

And here's your bonus, and get out your pencils and papers.

What time in the evening is exactly 150 minutes after 2:45 PM, given there are 60 minutes in an hour?

(answer buzzer beeps) Emily.

- 5:15.

- Is correct for your bonus points, Valley West.

As we turn now to our next tossup question.

What novel in which a black arrow is used by Bard the Bowman to kill the dragon Smaug was written about Bilbo Baggins by- (answer buzzer beeps) - William, Valley West.

- "The Hobbit".

- Is correct and here's your bonus.

The Oxbow and The Titans Goblet are landscape paintings by what leading artist of the Hudson River School?

(answer buzzer beeps) Emily.

- Pollock.

- Nope, that's Thomas Cole.

Okay, here's our next tossup question.

What song which as of October 2025 is the most streamed song on Spotify states, "I can't sleep until I feel your touch", and is a 2019 hit by The Weekend?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Emily, Valley West.

- "Stargirl".

- Is incorrect.

Rebound to Hanover Area.

(round buzzer beeps) (answer buzzer beeps) - "Blinding Lights".

- "Blinding Lights" is correct for your rebound points Hanover Area.

And that sound that you heard signals the end of the first quarter, and it's now time for the lightning round.

In this segment each team will have an opportunity to answer as many of the 10 rapid fire questions as they can in one minute.

Wyoming Valley West has won the coin toss and will pick first.

Your categories are food science or outdoor sculptures.

- Food science.

- Food science it is.

And your time begins when I finish reading the first question.

Answer the following about the science of food.

Calorie dense compounds that include oils?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Lipids.

- Yes.

Scientific name for table sugar?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Glucose.

- Sucrose.

Gas produced by yeast that makes dough rise?

- Skip.

- Carbon dioxide.

Rapid evaporation of water at 100 degrees Celsius?

- Boiling.

- Yes.

Device whose bomb type can measure energy content of food?

- Skip.

- Calorimeter.

Process and namesake cook tops that heats metal pans magnetically?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Stovetop.

- Induction.

Process in which proteins lose their shape on heating that makes eggs solidify?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Denaturalization.

- Is correct.

Reaction between amino acids and reducing sugars, forming a dark crust?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Caramelization.

- Maillard reaction.

Type of mixture such as mayonnaise in which one fluid is dispersed in another?

(time buzzer beeps) Ran out of time there, guys.

That is emulsions.

All right, that's going to do it for your portion of the first lightning round, Valley West.

We're coming over to you now, Hanover Area.

Your remaining category will be outdoor sculptures.

And again, your time begins when I finish reading the first question.

Answer the following about outdoor sculptures.

South Dakota Monument with colossal presidential sculptures?

(answer buzzer beeps) Lucas.

- Mount Rushmore.

- Yes.

Brazilian home city of Christ the Redeemer?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Rio.

- Be more specific.

- De Grand, Rio de Grand.

- Rio de Janeiro.

Animal depicted in two statues outside the New York Public Library?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Lions.

- Yes.

Charging animal in a bronze Wall Street statue?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Bull.

- Yes.

Constantin Brâncui home country where he built Infinity Column?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- That's Romania.

Popular nickname for Chicago's Cloud Gate?

(answer buzzer beeps) - The Bean.

- Yes.

Sculptor of La Grande Vitesse who also pioneered mobiles?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- That's Calder.

Title fruit balanced on a spoon bridge in Minneapolis?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- That's cherry.

Animal depicted in Louise Bourgeois' Maman?

(time buzzer beeps) That was a spider.

Okay, that's going to do it for our first lightning round and after that it is a tied game, 40 to 40.

And now we're going to go ahead and move into the second quarter with this tossup question.

What president ran with Cactus Jack John Nance Garner as his running mate, and later had Henry Wallace and Harry Truman serve as his vice presidents?

(answer buzzer beeps) Kayla, Hanover Area.

- FDR.

- Is correct.

And here's your bonus.

What award consists of a black base with a medal mounted in a C-shaped pewter holder is named for Antoinette Perry and honors Broadway Theater?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Tony.

- Tony is correct for your bonus points, Hanover Area.

As we turn to our next tossup, what Italian biologist whose namesake method stains neurons with silver nitrate discovered a complexor body that packages proteins in vesicles?

(time buzzer beeps) That biologist was Camillo Golgi.

Okay, here's our next tossup.

What island was devastated by the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake is south of the island of Hokkaido and is the most populous island of Japan?

(answer buzzer beeps) William, Valley West.

- Okinawa.

- Is incorrect.

Rebound to Hanover Area.

(time buzzer beeps) That is Honshu.

Okay, here's our next tossup.

What document issued by French King Henry IV in 1598 gave religious tolerance to Huguenots and was an edict that ended the French Wars of religion?

(time buzzer beeps) That was the Edict of Nantes.

All right, here's our next tossup.

What thermodynamic quantity, which is a state function according to Hess's law, has a negative change for exothermic reactions and is abbreviated H?

(answer buzzer beeps) Lucas, Hanover Area.

- Enthalpy.

- Is correct.

And here's your bonus.

In 2025 issues with Microsoft Azure revealed that an undersea internet cable had been severed in what sea which empties into the Gulf of Aden?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Just pick one.

- Kayla.

- The Red Sea.

- The Red Sea is correct for your bonus points, Hanover Area.

As we turn now to our next toss up.

What country which is covered by a great plain called the Alföld, is the native home of the Magyar people, and has its capital at Budapest?

(answer buzzer beeps) William, Valley West.

- Hungry.

- Is correct, and here's your bonus question.

Next token prediction is used to guess the next word in a sequence by what machine learning modules that power the Gemini and ChatGPT chatbots?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Open AI.

- Nope, that's large language model.

Okay, here's our next tossup question.

What war during which the Battle of Blenheim took place, ended with the Treaty of Utrecht recognizing the new Bourbon Dynasty of an Iberian country?

(answer buzzer beeps) Lucas, Hanover Area.

- The Iberian War.

- Is incorrect.

Rebound to Valley West.

(answer buzzer beeps) Elijah.

- The Franco-Spanish War.

- No, this was the War of the Spanish Succession.

Okay, let's go on to our next tossup question.

What type of structures whose A and B members are split by the Cassini division was first seen by Galileo around the sixth planet from the Sun?

(answer buzzer beeps) Kayla, Hanover Area.

- Moons.

- Is incorrect.

Rebound to Valley West.

(answer buzzer beeps) - Rings.

- Be more specific.

- Saturn's rings.

- That is correct for your rebound points Valley West.

And that sound that you heard signals the end of the first half and we're now going to give our contestants a little bit of a break, and the opportunity for those of you at home to get to know them a little better.

And we'll start with the students from Valley West.

And Xin, I'll come to you first.

Tell me what it is you like to do for fun.

- I like to go on nature walks.

- [Paul] Awesome, thank you very much.

Elijah.

- I like to participate in marching band.

- [Paul] Thank you, Elijah.

William.

- I like to play video games.

- Okay and Emily.

- I like to play tennis.

- All right, thank you very much Valley West and good luck the rest of the way.

Hanover Area, it's over to you.

Caitlin, tell us what you like to do for fun.

- I like to play soccer.

- Thank you, Caitlin.

Kayla.

- I like to read.

- [Paul] Thanks, Kayla.

Lucas.

- I play a trumpet in the marching band.

- [Paul] Thank you, Lucas.

Preston.

- I really like to run.

- All right, thank you very much Hanover Area and good luck to you the rest of the way.

It's very nice to meet all of you.

We'll now go ahead and begin the third quarter with this tossup question.

What novel whose protagonist's education is funded by Philomena Guinea depicts Esther Greenwood's struggle with mental health and is by Sylvia Plath?

(answer buzzer beeps) Kayla, Hanover area.

- "The Bell Jar".

- Is correct.

And here's your bonus now.

White Plains, Utica, and Yonkers are cities in what US state?

(answer buzzer beeps) - New York.

- New York is correct for your bonus points.

As we go to another tossup question now.

In what opera whose overture includes a march of the Swiss soldiers, does Gessler force the protagonist to shoot an apple off his son's head?

(answer buzzer beeps) William, Valley West.

- "William Tell".

- Is correct.

And here's your bonus question.

What does the C stand for in the style sheet language CSS which is used to specify the appearance of webpages?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Computer.

- Nope, that is cascading.

Okay guys, here's our next toss up question.

What event which was suppressed by Light Horse Harry Lee, saw residents of Western Pennsylvania revolt in 1794 against a new- (answer buzzer beeps) Elijah, Valley West.

- The Whiskey Rebellion.

- Is correct.

And here's your bonus question.

What surname is shared by Fannie who composed an Easter sonata and her brother who wrote "Songs Without Words" and "The Italian Symphony"?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Chopin.

- No, that was Felix Mendelssohn.

Okay, here's our next tossup question.

What country which was led during World War I by Prime Minister Robert Borden is the world's second largest and includes such provinces as Quebec?

(answer buzzer beeps) William Valley West.

- Canada.

- Is correct.

And your bonus question, the Hermitage Museum is in what palace in St.

Petersburg that served as the official resident of Russian czars until 1917?

(answer buzzer beeps) William.

- The Palace of St.

Petersburg.

- No, this was the Winter Palace.

All right, let's go to another toss up.

What university names a delayed gratification study, conducted by Walter Mischel, and was the site of Philip Zimbardo simulated prison experiment?

(answer buzzer beeps) William, Valley West.

- Stanford.

- Is correct.

And your bonus now, what desert is the driest non-polar desert in the world and is in northern Chile?

(answer buzzer beeps) William.

- Andean?

- No, this was the Atacama Desert.

The Atacama Desert.

Okay, here comes our next tossup question.

What allotrope of carbon can be made by growing it on silicon carbide crystals or by using scotch tape to pull off a single layer of graphite?

(answer buzzer beeps) William, Valley West.

- Graphene.

- Is correct.

And your bonus now.

A translation by Edward FitzGerald popularized what collection of poems by Omar Khayyám whose name is Persian for a type of quatrain?

(answer buzzer beeps) William.

- "The Ballot of Gilgamesh".

- No, this was the "Rubáiyát".

The "Rubáiyát".

Okay, here comes our next tossup.

What founder of the De Beers Mining Company promoted a railroad from Cape Town to Cairo?

And named both pre 1980s Zimbabwe and- (answer buzzer beeps) William, Valley West.

- Cecil Rhodes.

- Is correct.

And your bonus question.

What American general who moved cannon from Fort Ticonderoga to support George Washington's siege of Boston later became the first secretary of war?

(answer buzzer beeps) Emily.

- Lafayette.

- No, this was Henry Knox.

Well that sound that you heard signals the end of the third quarter and another lightning round.

This time Hanover area will pick first.

Your categories are A cities or complete the trio.

(answer buzzer beeps) - Complete the trio.

- Complete the trio it is.

And your time begins when I finish reading the first question.

Given two members of a group of three, name the third.

Crassus in Pompeii and Rome's first triumvirate?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- Julius Caesar.

Blossom and Buttercup?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Don't know.

- Bubbles.

Mo and Curly.

(answer buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- Larry.

Athos and Porthos in an Alexander Duma novel?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- Aramis.

Offset and takeoff?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- Quavo.

Igneous and sedimentary?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Magnum.

- Metamorphic rock.

Ego and super ego and Freud's model of the psyche?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- That's the id.

The Buddha and Sangha, two of Buddhism's three jewels.

(answer buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- That's Dharma.

The Elder Wand and the Cloak of Invisibility in "Harry Potter"?

(answer buzzer beeps) - The Sorcerer's Stone.

- That's incorrect.

That was the Resurrection Stone.

All right, we're going to move on over to Valley West now and your remaining category will be A cities.

And once again, your time begins when I finish reading the first question.

Identify these world cities whose English names start with the letter A. Capital of the Netherlands?

(answer buzzer beeps) William.

- Amsterdam.

- Yes.

Home to the headquarters of the Coca-Cola company.

(answer buzzer beeps) - Atlanta.

- Yes.

Capital of Turkey?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Elijah.

- Aturk.

- Ankara.

Home of the Taj Mahal?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- Agra.

Second most populous Egyptian city?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Alexandria.

- Yes.

Home of the US Naval Academy?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Annapolis.

- Yes.

Capital of Nigeria?

- Pass.

- That's Abuja.

Syrian city besieged for over four years?

- Pass.

- That's Aleppo.

Belgian port and most populous city in Flanders?

- Pass.

- Antwerp.

Capital of South Australia?

- Pass.

- Pass.

- That is Adelaide.

All right, that's going to do it for our second lightning round.

And after that we currently have Wyoming Valley West in the lead over Hanover 140 to 85 as we begin the last segment of the game with this tossup question.

One author's stories, "The Five Orange Pips" and "The Redheaded League" begin at 221B Baker Street where Dr.

Watson visits the detective Sherlock Holmes?

(answer buzzer beeps) Kayla, Hanover Area.

- Sherlock Holmes.

- Is incorrect.

Rebound to Valley West.

(answer buzzer beeps) - Arthur Conan Doyle.

- We're looking for the author, that is correct.

Arthur Conan Doyle.

All right, let's go to another tossup.

What mineral is the main component of plaster of Paris and drywall consists of calcium sulfate, dihydrate- (answer buzzer beeps) - William, Valley West.

- Gypsum.

- Is correct, and your bonus.

In September, 2025 what former FBI director was indicted for making a false statement after Donald Trump demanded that he be prosecuted?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Nevermind.

- That's James Comey, James Comey.

Okay, here's our next tossup.

In what Arab country where Iran attacked a US military base in June, 2025 is in- (answer buzzer beeps) Xin, Valley West.

- Qatar.

- Is correct, and here's your bonus now.

What German philosopher described Dasein, "The state of human beings always being enmeshed with the world" in his landmark 1927 book "Being and Time"?

(answer buzzer beeps) - William.

- Freud.

- Nope, that was Martin Heidegger.

Okay, let's go to our next toss up question.

What artist was inspired by the suicide of Carlos Casagemas to paint La Vie and The Old Guitarist, two works from his somber blue period?

(answer buzzer beeps) Emily, Valley West.

- Da Vinci.

- Is incorrect.

Rebound, Hanover Area.

(answer buzzer beeps) - Kayla.

- Picasso.

- Is correct for your rebound points, Hanover.

Let's go to another tossup.

In 2005, Baltimore's airport was named after what attorney who argued Brown v Board of Education and was the first Black Supreme Court Justice?

(answer buzzer beeps) Valley West, William.

- Clarence Thomas.

- Is incorrect.

Rebound to Hanover Area.

(time buzzer beeps) That is Thurgood Marshall.

Okay, here's our next tossup question.

In what state did a genocide of native people follow a discovery at Sutter's Mill that lured thousands of 49ers west during its gold rush?

(answer buzzer beeps) William, Valley West.

- California.

- Is correct and your bonus now.

Wood Island, a popular duty-free shopping destination, often known as China's Hawaii, forms China's southernmost province?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Macau?

- No, this is Hainan, Hainan.

All right, our next toss up.

Get out your pens and papers, it is a math question.

What is the degree of the polynomial formed by multiplying the quantity 3X squared plus 2X times the quantity X cubed plus 6.

(answer buzzer beeps) Elijah, Valley West.

- Five.

- Is correct.

And here's your bonus question.

What author of the 1962 novel "Another Country" wrote about David, who has a relationship with the title Italian man in his novel "Giovanni's Room"?

(time buzzer beeps) - That was James Baldwin.

Okay, here's our next toss up.

What politician charged in 2024 with receiving illegal travel benefits from Turkey ended his 2025 reelection campaign for mayor?

(answer buzzer beeps) - Elijah, Valley West.

- Eric Adams.

- Is correct, and your bonus now.

What dimensionless quantity equals circumference divided by pitch for a screw or equivalently the screws output force divided by the input force?

(answer buzzer beeps) William.

- Tensile strength.

- Nope.

That was mechanical advantage.

And that's the way the... That's the end of the game, and our winner tonight is Wyoming Valley West over Hanover Area 200 to 95.

Congratulations, Wyoming Valley West, you're going to be moving on.

And we'll see you next time with another round of "Scholastic Scrimmage".

I'm your host Paul Lazar, and thank you for watching.

(exciting music) (exciting music ends)