(intense, rhythmic music) ♪ Go - Welcome to the 18th season of WVIA "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 $1,000, $3,000, or $5,000.

Tonight's match features Mid Valley versus Valley View.

Representing Mid Valley are Carolyn Chakiris, Erald Zyberaj, William Lukman, Rosalinda Pegula, and their alternates are Adam Witzke and Sadie Solinsky.

Their advisor is Stan Yanoski.

Representing Valley View are Alivia Smith, Mason Peters, Natalie Fuller, and Connor Peters.

Their alternates are Riley Aquilino and Evan Chilek.

Their advisor is Cindy Cerminaro.

"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 toss-up question.

Correct answers to these questions are awarded 10 points, and that team will then receive a 5-point bonus question.

If that toss-up 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 toss-up points, but will not receive a bonus question.

Well, let's go ahead and get started with this toss-up question.

What city, whose namesake Skytree is over 2,000 feet tall, contains the Ginza shopping district, was formerly called Edo, and is the capital of Japan?

(buzzer beeps) Erald, Mid Valley?

- Tokyo.

- Is correct.

And your bonus question.

What senator and senior pastor at Atlanta's Ebenezer Baptist Church won re-election in 2022 by defeating Herschel Walker in a runoff election?

(alarm chimes) We were looking for Raphael Warnock.

Let's go to another toss-up.

What organ, in which Purkinje fibers conduct electrical signals, contains the tricuspid valve between the right atrium and ventricle and pumps blood?

(buzzer beeps) William, Mid Valley?

- The heart.

- Is correct.

And your bonus question.

What man wrote about Charles Condomine, whose first wife is unintentionally resurrected as a sarcastic ghost, in his play "Blithe Spirit"?

(buzzer beeps) Erald?

- Edgar Allen Poe.

- No, we're looking for Noel Coward.

Let's go to another toss-up.

What governing document, which retained the sovereignty, freedom and independence of each state, was replaced in 1789 by today's U.S. Constitution?

(buzzer beeps) William, Mid Valley?

- The Articles of Confederation.

- Is correct.

And here's your bonus question.

What kind of energy can be calculated as the square of an object's linear momentum divided by twice its mass?

(alarm chimes) That's kinetic energy.

Here's our next toss-up.

What American company, whose sales of Paxlovid plummeted in 2023, partnered with BioNTech to create the first FDA-approved COVID vaccine?

(buzzer beeps) Connor, Valley View.

- Pfizer.

- Is correct.

And here comes your bonus.

During what president's administration did alcohol distillers bribe Treasury Department officials in the Whiskey Ring scandal?

(buzzer beeps) - Jackson.

- Nope.

The answer was Ulysses S. Grant.

Here comes our next toss-up.

In September 1870, Henry Washburn named what aquatic landmark, a geyser in Yellowstone National Park that is known... (buzzer beeps) Connor, Valley View.

- Old Faithful.

- Is correct, and here comes your bonus.

What painter, who showed surrendering Confederate soldiers in "Prisoners from the Front," also made such seascapes as "Breezing Up" and "The Gulf Stream"?

(buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- That was Winslow Homer.

Our next toss-up question here.

What mathematical things have eigenvalues and eigenvectors, are invertible if they have a non-zero determinant, and are rectangular arrays of numbers?

(buzzer beeps) Connor, Valley View.

- Matrices.

- Is correct, and here comes your bonus question.

What blue video game character lends his name to a protein that directs formation of the brain and spinal cord and is opposed by a robotnikinin?

(buzzer beeps) - Sonic?

- Sonic the Hedgehog is correct for your bonus points, Valley View.

Let's go to another toss-up.

What man wrote the Blue Back Speller textbook and an 1828 work later owned by the Merriam Brothers, his American dictionary of the English language.

(alarm chimes) (buzzer beeps) William, Mid Valley.

- Merriam-Webster.

- [Paul] I'm sorry?

- Merriam-Webster.

- [Paul] Judges?

Is incorrect.

Rebound to Valley View.

(buzzer beeps) - Webster.

- Judges?

Is correct.

The actual name was Noah Webster.

Well, that sound that you heard signals the end of the first quarter, and it's now time for the Lightning Round.

(electricity crackles and hums) 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.

Valley View has won the coin toss and will pick first.

Your categories are "Heracles' Labors" or "Domes of the World."

(buzzer beeps) - Domes.

- Okay, "Domes" it is.

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

In what present-day country can one find these domes or domed buildings?

Clear the buzzers, please.

Thank you.

The Hagia Sophia?

(buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- [Paul] Turkey.

The Taj Mahal.

(buzzer beeps) - India.

- [Paul] Yes!

Monticello.

(buzzer beeps) - Italy.

- [Paul] United States.

The Reichstag building.

(buzzer beeps) - Germany.

- [Paul] Yes!

The Biosphere, a museum built for Expo 67.

(buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- That's Canada.

St.

Basil's Cathedral.

(buzzer beeps) - Italy.

- [Paul] Russia.

The Shwedagon Pagoda.

(buzzer beeps) - India.

- [Paul] Burma.

Royal Albert Hall.

(buzzer beeps) - United Kingdom.

- [Paul] Yes.

The Sheikh Zayed Mosque in Abu Dhabi.

(buzzer beeps) - Iraq.

- [Paul] UAE.

The Mausoleum of Timur in Samarkand.

(buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- That's Uzbekistan.

(alarm chimes) All right, Valley View, that's going to do it for your portion of the Lightning Round.

Mid Valley, we're coming over to you.

Your remaining category will be "Heracles' Labors."

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

Answer the following about Heracles' 12 Labors.

Water monster with regenerating heads he killed.

(buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- [Paul] That's Hydra.

Queen of the Amazons whose girdle he seized.

(buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- That's Hippolyta.

Kind of building owned by Augeas that he rerouted a river to clean.

(buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- [Paul] That's stables.

Three-headed dog of the underworld he captured.

(buzzer beeps) - Cerberus.

- [Paul] Yes!

Golden fruit he took from the Hesperides.

(buzzer beeps) - Apple.

- Yes!

Titan he rescued who brought fire to mankind.

(buzzer beeps) - Prometheus.

- Yes!

Creatures he drove from their home in a swamp in Stymphalia.

(buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- [Paul] Birds.

The twin sister of Apollo, whose Ceryneian hind he trapped.

(buzzer beeps) William.

- Athena.

- That's Artemis.

The creature imprisoned in the labyrinth whose father, (alarm chimes) the Cretan Bull, he captured.

That was the Minotaur.

And that's going to do it for the Lightning Round, and after that, we currently have Valley View in the lead over Mid Valley, 60 to 45.

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

In 2022, what island nation expanded its military service requirement, citing increased military exercises across its namesake strait by China?

(buzzer beeps) William, Mid Valley.

- Taiwan.

- Is correct.

And here's your bonus question.

In July 2023, what country's central bank kept interest rates at 97% ahead of elections in which incumbent President Alberto Fernandez is not running?

(buzzer beeps) Erald?

- Spain.

- No, the answer was Argentina.

Let's go to another toss-up.

What metal scattered electrons in a Davisson-Germer experiment, likely joins with iron to form earth's inner core, and has atomic symbol Ni?

(buzzer beeps) William, Mid Valley.

- Nickel.

- Is correct.

And your bonus question now.

In astronomy, what is the term for the zone around a star within which a planet could support liquid water?

(buzzer beeps) - Biosphere.

- No, we're looking for habitable zone or the Goldilocks zone.

Let's go to another toss-up question.

What former Tennessee governor, called Raven while he lived among the Cherokee, won the Battle of San Jacinto and was the first president of Texas?

(alarm chimes) We're looking for Sam Houston.

Our next toss-up question.

What river contains the massive Rybinsk reservoir, names a city formerly known as Stalingrad, and is a Russian river that is the longest in Europe?

(buzzer beeps) William, Mid Valley.

- The Rhine.

- [Paul] Is incorrect.

Rebound to Valley View.

(buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- That was the Volga river.

Let's go to another toss-up question.

What adjective indicates a planet closer to the Sun than another, or an anatomical feature below another, such as the lower branch of the vena cava?

(buzzer beeps) Connor, Valley View.

- Inferior.

- Is correct.

And your bonus question.

In 2023, a judge in what Western state sided with youth who argued that their right to a healthful environment must be considered in fossil fuel policy?

(buzzer beeps) - Arkansas.

- No, we are looking for Montana.

Our next toss-up.

What king presided over most Amarna-style art creation, was the husband of Nefertiti, and was a pharaoh who started a religion centered on Aten?

(alarm chimes) Okay, that king was Akhenaten.

Let's go to another toss-up.

What novel, in which Arthur Holmwood provides Lucy Westenra with a blood transfusion, depicts Dr. Van Helsing's quest to defeat the title vampire?

(buzzer beeps) Natalie, Valley View.

- "Dracula."

- Is correct.

And your bonus question.

The Peace of Pressburg was signed in the aftermath of what 1805 battle, in which Napoleon's victory demolished the Third Coalition?

(buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- That was the battle of Austerlitz.

Here's our next toss-up.

What quantity, which is equal to the dot product of force and velocity, is defined as the work done per unit time and is measured in watts?

(buzzer beeps) Connor, Valley View.

- Energy.

- [Paul] Is incorrect.

Rebound to Mid Valley.

(buzzer beeps) - Electricity.

- No.

The answer we were looking for was power.

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

We'll start with the students from Mid Valley, and Carolyn, I'll come to you first.

Tell us what you like to do for fun when you're not in class.

- I like to run.

I am a track runner.

I also like to read a lot in my free time, in addition to baking and cooking.

- [Paul] All right, very good.

Thanks for being here.

Erald?

- I like to play tennis and soccer.

I play for both the teams for my school.

- [Paul] Nice!

William?

- I like to take photos.

I'm a photographer.

(clears throat) I take photos for the yearbook and our sports teams.

- [Paul] Hey, those yearbook photos, they're gonna last forever, so, good for you.

Rosalinda?

- I spend most of my time babysitting, and baking, and just hangin' out.

- [Paul] Babysitting your team?

Or- - (laughs) Yeah.

- Okay.

Thanks for being here, Mid Valley.

Good luck the rest of the way.

Valley View, coming over to you.

Alivia, what do you like to do for fun?

- I run cross country, I throw javelin in track, and I do horseback riding.

- [Paul] All right, very good.

Mason?

- For fun I like to play golf and tennis, and I play golf for my school's team, and I plan to play for my school's tennis team in the spring.

- [Paul] Very cool.

Natalie?

- Outside of school, I play softball, and I also play on my school's team, and additionally, I also like to read outside of school.

- [Paul] All right, and Connor?

- I also play for my school's tennis team, so I do enjoy playing tennis, and I just like hanging out with my friends.

- Sounds like a lot of fun.

It was very nice to meet all of you, and we'll now go ahead and begin the third quarter with this toss-up question.

What country, which operates the Aramco Company that manages its massive petroleum reserves, is home to the holy cities of Medina and Mecca?

(buzzer beeps) - Saudi Arabia.

- [Paul] Erald, Mid Valley.

- Saudi Arabia.

- Is correct.

And here's your bonus.

What Russian composer, whose first symphony is nicknamed "The Classical," wrote a concert-length ballet based on "Romeo and Juliet"?

(buzzer beeps) - Mozart?

- No, we were looking for Sergei Prokofiev.

Good guess, though.

Let's go to another toss-up question.

What animal form is taken by a namesake grandmother protector figure in Navajo myth, and by a cunning storyteller from West African myth named Anansi?

(alarm chimes) Okay, that animal was the spider.

Let's go to another toss-up, and get your pencils and papers ready.

What is the smallest positive integer that, when squared, produces a value greater than 300, given 15 squared equals 225?

(buzzer beeps) William, Mid Valley.

- 18.

- Is correct.

And here comes your bonus question.

B.R.

Ambedkar was a leader of what Indian social group who were often ostracized and left out of the Hindu caste system?

(buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- Okay, that was Dalits, or untouchables.

Here's our next toss-up question.

What song, which reached Billboard number one in 2019, 25 years after its release, describes "just one thing I need" and is a seasonal Mariah Carey hit?

(buzzer beeps) Carolyn, Mid Valley.

- "All I Want for Christmas Is You."

- Is correct.

And here comes your bonus question.

Toys are discarded after a boy contracts scarlet fever in what Marjorie Williams book, which is named after a stuffed bunny who becomes real?

(buzzer beeps) - "The Velveteen Rabbit."

- Is correct for your bonus points, Mid Valley.

And we move on now to another toss-up question.

What mountain range passes through the city of Ouarzazate, is home to various ethnic Berber groups, and stretches across Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco?

(buzzer beeps) William, Mid Valley.

- The Alps.

- [Paul] Is incorrect.

Rebound to Valley View.

(buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- Okay, that was the Atlas Mountains.

Here's our next toss-up.

What man, who described life as "a crack of light between two eternities of darkness" in his book "Speak Memory," wrote about Humbert Humbert in "Lolita"?

(alarm chimes) That man was Vladimir Nabokov.

Here's our next toss-up.

What phylum, whose members have an internal skeleton of spicules and use filter feeding, consists of simple invertebrates once used to absorb liquids?

(alarm chimes) That is Porphyra.

Here's our next toss-up question.

What document, which consists of 63 clauses and was made in response to a rebellion by powerful barons, was signed by King John and has a Latin name?

(buzzer beeps) Erald, Mid Valley.

- The Magna Carta.

- Is correct.

And here's your bonus.

(alarm chimes) The pituitary and pineal glands are part of what body system?

(buzzer beeps) William.

- The respiratory.

- No, it's the endocrine system.

The endocrine system.

Well, that sound you heard signals the end of the third quarter, and another Lightning Round.

(electricity crackles and hums) This time, Mid Valley will pick first.

Your categories are "Shortstops" or "Arizona."

- "Shortstops."

- "Shortstops" it is, and your time begins after I finish reading the first question.

Given a former MLB shortstop, name the team with which he spent all or the majority of his career.

Derek Jeter.

(buzzer beeps) - Yankees.

- [Paul] Yes.

Ernie Banks.

(buzzer beeps) - Giants.

- [Paul] Cubs.

Cal Ripken Jr. (buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- [Paul] Orioles.

Honus Wagner.

(buzzer beeps) - Rangers.

- [Paul] Pirates.

Ozzie Smith.

(buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- That's the Cardinals.

Jimmy Rollins.

(buzzer beeps) - Red Sox.

- [Paul] Phillies.

Barry Larkin.

(buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- Reds.

Troy Tulowitzki.

(buzzer beeps) - A's.

- [Paul] Rockies.

Robin Yount.

(buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- [Paul] Brewers.

Alan Trammell.

(buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- All right, that was the Tigers, the Detroit Tigers.

All right, Mid Valley.

That's gonna wrap up your portion of the Lightning Round.

Now, Valley View, we're gonna come over to you, and your remaining category will be "Arizona."

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

Answer the following about Arizona.

Its capital.

(buzzer beeps) - Phoenix.

- [Paul] Yes!

Former ninth planet discovered at a Flagstaff observatory.

(buzzer beeps) - Pluto.

- [Paul] Yes.

1966 Supreme Court case that held suspects must be read their rights.

(buzzer beeps) - State of Arizona versus Miranda.

- [Paul] Yes.

NFL team that plays in Glendale.

(buzzer beeps) - Cardinals.

- [Paul] Yes!

Senator who lost the 2008 presidential election.

(buzzer beeps) - Mitt Romney.

- John McCain.

Corral that names an 1881 gunfight between the Earp and Clanton families.

(buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- [Paul] That's the O.K.

Corral.

Architect of Scottsdale's Taliesin West and Fallingwater.

(buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- [Paul] That's Frank Lloyd Wright.

Teenager who moves away from Arizona in Stephenie Meyer's novel "Twilight."

(buzzer beeps) - Bella Swan.

- [Paul] Yes!

Alternative band from Mesa whose hits include 2001's "The Middle."

(alarm chimes) That was Jimmy Eat World.

And that's going to do it for the Lightning Round.

And after that, a very close game.

Mid Valley in the lead over Valley View, 115 to 105.

And we'll now go ahead and begin the last segment of the game with this toss-up question.

Willie steals money from Walter Younger in what play that inspired Bruce Norris' play "Clybourne Park" and was written by Lorraine Hansberry?

(alarm chimes) That was "A Raisin in the Sun."

Let's go to another toss-up, and yes, it's math.

Get your pencils and papers ready.

What integer equals the value of 48% of 75, given that the same integer equals 75% of 48?

(buzzer beeps) William, Mid Valley.

- 36.

- Is correct.

And your bonus question.

What term for a specific type of young bird is also the surname of the Canadian actor who played Neil Armstrong in the 2018 film "First Man"?

(buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- That's Gosling.

Let's go to another toss-up question.

In 2023, what country launched the SLIM lunar lander, nicknamed the "Moon Sniper," which was developed by the JAXA organization headquartered in Tokyo?

(buzzer beeps) Connor, Valley View.

- Japan.

- Is correct.

And here's your bonus.

What largest of the Greek Dodecanese Islands was formerly the site of an ancient Colossus?

(buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- That's Rhodes.

Here's our next toss-up question.

What author of "Beyond Freedom and Dignity" studied animals in his namesake box and was a behaviorist-psychologist who researched... (buzzer beeps) Connor, Valley View.

- Skinner.

- Is correct.

And your bonus, and get your pencils and papers out.

Two answers are required here.

What are the two solutions to the equation X divided by 2 equals 8 divided by X?

(buzzer beeps) - Connor.

- 4 and negative 4.

- Is correct for your bonus points, Valley View, as we move on to our next toss-up question.

What novel, whose antagonists used tripod machines equipped with heat rays, was written in 1897 by H.G.

Wells about the invasion of Earth by Martians?

(alarm chimes) That was "The War of the Worlds."

Let's go on now to another toss-up.

What campaign included a People's phase led by Peter the Hermit, began at the Council of Clermont in 1095, and created the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem?

(alarm chimes) That was the First Crusade.

Less than a minute to go.

Here's our next toss-up.

What country is the setting of "The Three-Cornered Hat" by Manuel de Falla, and was where the flamenco dance originated in the region of Andalusia?

(buzzer beeps) Erald, Mid Valley.

- Turkey.

- [Paul] Is incorrect.

Rebound to Valley View.

(buzzer beeps) - Argentina?

- Nope.

We were looking for Spain.

Here's our next toss-up question.

What character, who gets trapped in a cave with the Old Man of the Sea on his back, embarks on seven voyages as a sailor in the "Arabian Nights"?

(alarm chimes) That was Sinbad.

Here's our next toss-up question.

What chemistry quantity, whose change is independent of reaction path, according to Hess' law, and is negative for exothermic reactions, is denoted H?

(buzzer beeps) William, Mid Valley.

- Heat.

- Be more specific.

(alarm chimes) - Heat energy.

- [Paul] Is incorrect.

Rebound to Valley View.

(buzzer beeps) Connor.

- Specific heat.

- No, we were looking for enthalpy.

Enthalpy.

Well, that's the end of the game, and a great one it was.

Our winner tonight is Valley View over Mid Valley, by the slimmest of margins, 130 to 125.

Congratulations, Valley View, you are 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 thanks for watching.

(intense, rhythmic music)