(ethereal chime swells) - It is time to find our next team for the semifinals.

Who will move on for their chance at the $1,000 grand prize?

Will it be the Clippers of Yarmouth High School (triumphant music blares) or the Red Riots of Orono High School?

(triumphant music blares) Find out next on "High School Quiz Show Maine."

(upbeat music continues) - [Narrator] Production support for "High School Quiz Show Maine" is provided by.

- [Narrator] Energy fuels more than homes and businesses.

It fuels dreams, ideas, and growth.

Unitil champions the critical thinkers and team players of tomorrow, and is proud to support "High School Quiz Show Maine," where learning takes center stage.

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Cyber risk coverage from Safety Insurance is designed to help protect businesses from data breaches, ransomware, and other cyber attacks.

Safety Insurance, we'll help you manage life's storms, even the cyber kind.

(gentle music begins) - [Narrator] Since 1852, Bangor Savings Bank has been dedicated to keeping New Englanders at the heart of what they do.

That means investing in communities they serve and supporting families and businesses.

You matter more.

- [Narrator] And by viewers like you.

Thank you.

(upbeat music begins) - Welcome to "High School Quiz Show Maine."

I'm Todd Gutner, we're at quarterfinal number three, and the matchup might look a bit familiar, because this is a repeat of last year's final.

In the season eight championship, Yarmouth wrapped up their third year on "Quiz Show" as the runner's up in an exciting game that ended in a tiebreaker.

Orono took the crown and the amazing finale and became the season eight champion in only their second year on the show.

Will Yarmouth get another shot at the title or could Orono move on to become our first back-to-back champ?

Let's get things started by meeting the teams.

For Yarmouth.

We have Sebastian, Kevin, Elise, and James, with alternate Chad, and they're coached by Sarah Wilson.

And for Orono we have Noah, Liam, Anthea, and Peter, with alternates, Micah and Dom, and they're coached by Shauna Goodall and Troy Wagstaff.

And the competition has four rounds, the tossup round, the head-to-head round, the category round, and the lightning round.

We'll start with the tossup round.

All answers are worth 10 points, and this is the only round with no point deductions for wrong answers.

Players must wait for me to complete the question, and if one team answers incorrectly, the other team will be given a chance to answer.

I wish both of you good luck.

I got a feeling this is gonna be a great match.

Let's get it started.

A pride is a group of what kind of big cats that live and hunt together?

(buzzer chimes) Noah.

- Lions.

- That is correct.

After serving two terms as President of the United States, who published his farewell address to the nation in September, 1796?

(buzzer chimes) James.

- George Washington.

- George Washington.

What brightly colored flower, whose edible seeds can be pressed to make cooking oil, is a symbol of Ukraine?

(buzzer chimes) Noah?

- The sunflower.

- The sunflower is right.

Wallace Carothers, a chemist at DuPont, is known for inventing what synthetic polymer that was introduced in the 1930s as a substitute for silk in the manufacturing of women's stockings?

(buzzer chimes) Noah again.

- Nylon.

- Nylon, yes.

Up next we have a picture question.

Take a look at the monitor.

The first continental Congress met in Carpenter's Hall in 1774 in which city that is now known as the birthplace of America?

(buzzer chimes) Kevin, Yarmouth.

- Philadelphia.

- Yes.

Which Disney animated film from 2002, and its 2025 live action reboot, tells the story of a little girl in Hawaii who adopts a lost creature that landed on earth from outer space?

(buzzer chimes) Anthea.

- "Lilo and Stitch."

- That is correct.

Although it was fought on Breeds Hill, north of Boston in June, 1775, the first battle of the Revolutionary War is named for which other hill that's located nearby?

(buzzer chimes) Elise.

- Bunker Hill.

- Bunker Hill is the right answer.

On August 9th, 2025, in a game between the Miami Marlins and the Atlanta Braves, Jen Powell became the first woman in history to do what job in a major league baseball game?

(buzzer chimes) Noah.

- Umpire.

- Umpire, yes.

From the Latin for agree, what adjective describes two angles with the same measure, like the base angles in an isosceles triangle?

(buzzer chimes) Elise.

- Complimentary.

- [Todd] That's incorrect.

Orono, you wanna give it a shot?

Go ahead Liam.

- Congruent.

- Congruent is the right answer.

All right, up next we have a video question.

Please take a look at the monitor.

- Hi, Nicole Ogrysko, local host of "All Things Considered" and news reporter on Maine Public Radio, and here's my question for you.

What is the name of the wooden pole that Colonial-era Patriots would erect to display flags, banners, or signs as a form of symbolic speech against British rule?

(buzzer chimes) - [Todd] Sebastian, Yarmouth.

- Liberty pole.

- That is the right answer.

Next question, a nocturnal animal is active mainly at night.

What corresponding word describes an animal that is active mainly during the day?

(buzzer chimes) Peter.

- Diurnal.

- Diurnal is correct.

The Alps mountain range is in Europe, the Southern Alps mountain range is on South Island in what country?

(buzzer blares) Answer is New Zealand.

The laws of orbits, areas, and periods are the three laws of planetary motion attributed to what 16th century German astronomer?

(buzzer chimes) Elise.

- Kepler.

- Kepler's right.

According to Emoji Tracker, which of the following is the most commonly used emoji across major social media platforms worldwide, crying face emoji, fire emoji, or heart emoji?

(buzzer chimes) James.

- Heart emoji.

- Heart emoji is the right answer.

All right, our first math question.

It is coming right now.

On a map, if one quarter inch represents 60 miles, how many miles does two and three quarter inches represent?

(buzzer blares) Answer is 660.

660 miles.

Here's our next question.

What two words complete this quote from the philosopher and poet George Santiana?

"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to," what?

(buzzer chimes) Elise.

- Repeat it.

- Repeat it is right.

Located in the Patagonia region of Argentina, Perito Moreno is what type of natural feature, defined as a large accumulation of ice, snow, and rock that originates on land and moves down slope under the influence of its own weight and gravity?

(buzzer chimes) Go ahead, Peter - Glacier.

- Glacier is correct.

In ancient Greek drama, what name was given to the group of performers who sang, danced and served as a collective character providing exposition and commentary.

(buzzer chimes) Elise.

- Chorus.

- Chorus, yes.

Released for Nintendo Switch in 2024, "Brothership" is a video game featuring what two brothers who are best known for their work as plumbers?

(buzzer chimes) James.

- Mario and Luigi.

- Yeah, that's right.

Which of these is most likely to have an odometer, a car, a nuclear power plant, or a microwave oven?

(buzzer chimes) Kevin.

- Car.

- Car is right.

After being tried and convicted of economic sabotage and genocide, what longtime Romanian dictator was overthrown and executed by firing squad in December, 1989?

(buzzer chimes) Noah.

- Tito.

- [Todd] One more time?

- Tito.

- [Todd] That's incorrect.

Yarmouth, Kevin.

- Ceauscu.

- That is the right answer, nice job.

Next question.

The characters Annie and Jack made their debut in the 1992 children's book "Dinosaurs Before Dark," the first title in what series created by Mary Pope Osborne?

(buzzer chimes) Noah.

- "Magic Tree House."

- That one's right.

Here's our second math question now.

A bakery charges $300 to mix a batter for cupcakes, plus 15 cents for each cupcake that it has baked.

If a customer orders 500 cupcakes, how much will the order cost?

(buzzer chimes) Kevin.

- $1,050.

- [Todd] That's incorrect, Orono?

(buzzer blares) The answer's $375.

$375.

(Alarm blares) All right, that's the end of our first round, and of course it's super tight.

Yarmouth at 110, Orono 90.

We've got a great quarterfinal match underway.

Don't go anywhere.

We will meet the players when we get back.

(intense music begins) Before we go to the head-to-head round, we'd like to pause and get to know our players with a slightly off-the-wall question.

And it is, if you could create your own novel, television show, or movie, what genre would you like to base it in and why?

Sebastian.

- I would make a coming of age movie, based on just like what it's like growing up in like the suburbs of New England.

- Hmm, kind of like Yarmouth?

- Yeah.

- All right, what type of movie would it be?

A fun one, a scary one.

- You know, kind of a mix of both.

Just like the pitfalls of growing up, it's not like a one-sided thing.

- All right, all right.

Kevin, your turn.

- I think I would like to make some sort of western, just those movies with like wide open areas and big skies.

Those are always cool.

- Yeah, like tumbleweed all over the place.

- Oh yeah.

- [Todd] Lots of gunfights.

- Oh yeah.

(Todd laughs) - Elise, your turn.

- I'd probably have to go with like a historical drama, 'cause I love the show "Bridgerton," so something along those lines.

- Would it be like European history kind of thing?

- [Elise] Yeah.

- [Todd] All right, thanks Elise.

James?

- I think I'd make a science fiction movie, 'cause I would wanna film it in space.

- In space?

That would be.

- First of its kind.

- Exactly, right?

You'd be cutting edge stuff there, right?

Thanks James.

Let's head over to Orono, Noah.

- I'd like to direct and put together a soundtrack for a heist movie.

- A heist movie?

- Yeah, set like mid 1980s.

- [Todd] Like an art heist type thing or?

- Money.

They're not.

- [Todd] All money, you just want money.

- They're not nice guys.

The characters aren't good people.

- Okay, all right, thanks Noah.

Liam?

- You know, Todd, I think that my story would be a tragedy, the likes of those told in ancient Greek society, because I am a hopeless romantic, stuck in a world where love has been forgotten.

- I hope you find love someday, Liam.

- [Liam] Thank you Todd.

- All right, Anthea.

- I think I'd like to make a sci-fi comedy TV show, because when I was a kid my favorite thing to watch was this sci-fi comedy my dad showed me, and I also think space is really cool.

- You remember the name of the show?

- I do, it was this eighties like British show called "Red Dwarf" and I like loved it so much.

- Okay, yeah, I didn't have the British background, but if it was like an American I probably would've known it 'cause I'm an eighties kid too, I grew up then.

Alright, thank you Anthea.

Peter, your turn, last one.

- I would really like to make a horror movie because it is widely known that I'm quite a creepy, quite a spooky guy.

Quite a scary guy if I need to be.

(Todd laughs) - [Todd] That's not real, is it?

- Who knows?

(Todd laughs) - I don't actually.

Thank you Peter.

The head-to-head round is next, but let's see how well you do with our viewer question of the week.

(intense music begins) - Hi, I'm Amanda Vicinanzo from Unitil and here is your America @250 viewer question of the week.

Before it was first recognized as a state in 1820, what was the official government designation of the area called Maine?

(intense music continues) The answer is, the District of Maine.

From 1622 to October 24th, 1780, it was called the Province of Maine, and was part of the province of Massachusetts.

On March 15th, 1820, with statehood, it became simply Maine.

(intense music continues) - It's time for the head-to-head round.

Players alternate facing off one-on-one here at the desk.

Correct answers are worth 10 points, incorrect answers will cost you 10 points.

There are 90 seconds on our clock.

Players ready?

Here we go.

What comic book superhero has a sidekick named Robin?

(buzzer chimes) - Batman.

- Yes.

In the nursery rhyme, what creature frightens Little Miss Muffet away?

(buzzer blares) A spider.

The NFL team in Jacksonville is named for what?

(buzzer chimes) - Jaguars.

- Jaguars.

Which southern US state has the postal abbreviation, AL?

(buzzer chimes) - Alabama.

- Yes.

The smallest bones in the human body are located.

(buzzer chimes) - Ear.

- Ear is right.

How is one fifth expressed as a percentage?

(buzzer chimes) - 20.

- 20, yes.

In 1971, astronaut Alan Shepherd demonstrated what sport on the moon?

(buzzer chimes) - Golf.

- Golf.

Which US state is home to Grand Teton National Park?

(buzzer chimes) - Wyoming.

- Wyoming is right.

Warsaw is the capital of which?

(buzzer chimes) - Poland.

- Yes it is.

What is the last name of Ebenezer, the main character?

(buzzer chimes) - Scrooge.

- Scrooge is correct.

Because of the algae that they eat, adult flamingos?

(buzzer chimes) - Pink.

- Pink is correct.

What Russian author wrote the novel "War and Peace?"

(buzzer chimes) - Tolstoy.

- Tolstoy, yes.

The Pampas are a grassland biome on which continent?

(buzzer chimes) - Africa.

- Incorrect, South America.

In the 19th century, cartoonist Thomas Nast began using what animal to represent the Republican party?

(buzzer chimes) - Elephant.

- Elephant, right.

In the class of car racing known as F1, the F stands for?

(buzzer chimes) - Formula.

- Yes.

Anthracite is a hard, high quality type of what fossil fuel?

(buzzer blares) (Alarm blares) Coal, oh, and that's the end of our head-to-head round.

Yarmouth pulling away just a little bit.

They have 200 points, Orono 120.

The category round is next, don't go away.

- [Narrator] Production support for "High School Quiz Show Maine" is provided by.

- [Narrator] The Worthington Scholarship Foundation, dedicated to the success of Maine students by providing scholarships and personalized support throughout their college journeys.

Learn more at worthingtonscholars.org.

- Sit up, ready to learn?

I'm a proud member of the Maine Education Association.

English is my second language, and I am a teacher that teaches multilingual learners.

My name is Nes Griffin and I am MEA.

- [Narrator] And by viewers like you.

Thank you.

(intense music begins) - Next up is the category round with the following choices.

Paper towns, turtles all the way down, the fault in our stars, shades of green, an abundance of Katherines, and looking for Alaska.

Each team will alternate control of two categories.

Questions have increasing point values.

With each question they can choose to answer, and either gain or lose points, they can skip it and neither gain nor lose points, or, once per category, they can toss and force the other team to answer.

Players will have five seconds to confer and decide what to do.

Orono, you trail by just a little bit.

Noah, what's your first category?

- [Noah] We're gonna go with the fault in our stars.

- The fault in our stars.

These are questions about lines from Shakespeare.

Here's the first one.

"The fault, Dear Brutus, is not in our stars, but in ourselves that we are underlings."

This line is spoken by Cassius in which play that involves the murder of its title character?

- Julius Caesar.

- Judges.

Yep, we're good with that, thank you.

Onto the next one, the fault in our stars for 15.

"We know what we are, but know not what we may be," is a line spoken by Ophelia in which Shakespeare play about a prince of Denmark?

- Hamlet.

- Hamlet is correct.

The fault in our stars for 20.

"Lord, what fools these mortals be," is a line spoken by what mischievous character in "A Midsummer Night's Dream?"

- Skip.

- You wanna skip that one?

The answer is Puck.

Puck's the answer.

The fault in our stars for 25.

"What's past is prologue," meaning the things that happened before will affect what happens in the future, is a line from what Shakespeare play whose title refers to a violent storm?

- "The Tempest."

- "The Tempest" is correct.

Here's the last one in the fault in our stars.

This is for 30.

"Now is the winter of our discontent made glorious summer by this son of York," is the first line of which historical play about the English king, who died at the Battle of Bosworth field in 1485?

- We're gonna skip.

- You wanna skip that one?

The answer is "Richard III."

All right, that's the end of that category.

We go over to Yarmouth.

Elise, what's your first category going to be?

- [Elise] We'll go with shades of green.

- Shades of green.

All of your answers will contain names of different shades of green.

Here's the first question.

A certain shade of green is named for what agricultural commodity that is the primary ingredient in guacamole?

- Avocado?

Avocado.

- [Todd] Avocado, yes.

Shades of green, 15.

In the 1870s, a dentist named Washington Sheffield invented a toothpaste flavored with what plant, whose name is associated with a light shade of green?

- Spearmint or mint?

Mint.

- Mint is correct, yes.

Shades of green for 20.

Columbia is the world's largest producer of what green precious gem that is the birth stone for the month of May?

- Emerald.

- Emerald, right.

Shades of green, 25.

The United States, Turkey, and Iran are the world's largest producers of what tree nuts, whose shells are white, and whose meat is a distinctive shade of green?

- Pistachio.

- Yes, that is right.

Shades of green for 30, the last one.

Fiddleheads are young shoots of what non-flowering vascular plant that reproduce via spores on their leaves?

- Is it garlic?

Garlic?

- Ooh, garlic's incorrect, it's actually fern.

(Elise sighs) Fern is the right answer.

All right, that wraps up that category.

We're back to Noah and Orono.

- [Noah] We're gonna go with paper towns.

- Paper towns, all questions in this category are about city newspapers.

Here's the first one.

Among the oldest continuously published newspapers in the United States is The Current, based in what city that is the capital of Connecticut?

- Hartford.

- Hartford is right.

Paper towns for 15.

Which newspaper, based in Augusta, Maine, published its first issue in January 1825, five years after Maine became a state?

- Skip.

- It's the Kennebec Journal.

Paper Towns for 20.

Based in New York, but distributed nationwide from 1924 to 1958, The Daily Worker was a newspaper for members of what political party?

- Skip.

- Skip again, Communist Party.

Paper Towns for 25.

With a name that means the world in French, what newspaper published its first issue in December, 1944 shortly after the Nazis left Paris?

- Lamont.

- Yes, you got that, 25 points right there.

Paper towns for 30.

Taking its name from two features of the American flag, what weekly newspaper for military personnel currently delivers 1.4 million print issues a day to service members in the US and overseas?

- Stars and Stripes.

- Stars and Stripes is also right.

All right, that wraps up paper towns.

We're back to Elise and Yarmouth for their second category.

- [Elise] We'll take an abundance of Katherines.

- An abundance of Katherines.

These are questions about people named Katherine, Kate, or Katie.

Katherine, Kate, or Katie.

"Running up That Hill," a 1985 song by what British singer songwriter, became a surprise hit in 2022 when it was featured in an episode of "Stranger Things."

- Kate Bush.

- Kate Bush, yes.

An abundance of Katherines for 15.

Which US swimmer named Katie won her 16th individual world title at the 2023 World Swimming Championships, surpassing a record set by Michael Phelps?

- Katie Ledecky.

- That is also correct.

An abundance of Katherines for 20.

Katherine of Aragon, the first wife of King Henry VIII, was the daughter of what king and and queen of Spain who financed Columbus's first voyage to the new world?

- Ferdinand and Isabella.

- That is also right.

An abundance of Katherines for 25.

Mathematician Katherine Johnson worked for NASA and provided calculations that were essential to the success of which space program that sent John Glenn to orbit the earth in 1962?

- Mercury.

- Is there a number to that?

Skip.

- [Todd] You wanna skip that?

The answer is Mercury, it is Mercury.

Kevin, I heard it, I heard it.

It's okay.

An abundance of Katherines for 30, here's the last one.

The first woman to solo anchor a network evening newscast was what woman, who was an anchor of the CBS Evening News from 2006 to 2011?

- We'll toss.

- You wanna toss?

Okay, we're gonna go to Orono.

Here's the question again.

The first woman to solo anchor a network evening newscast was what woman, who was an anchor of the CBS Evening News from 2006 to 2011?

Noah.

- Maria Porter.

- The answer is Katie Couric.

Katie Couric.

All right, that wraps up our category round.

This one is still tight.

Yarmouth 285, Orono 205.

Everything can change in the lightning round, so sit tight.

We will be right back.

(intense music begins) Okay, we're heading into the final 90 seconds of gameplay.

It's our lightning round.

Players, you do not have to wait for me to finish the question.

You can buzz in at any time, but do not answer until I call your name.

You get 20 points for each correct answer, an incorrect answer will cost you 20.

The other team does not get the chance to answer.

Our clock is set, good luck.

Here we go.

The classic sitcom "Cheers" is set in what city?

(buzzer chimes) Noah.

- Austin.

- [Todd] Yes.

A unicycle has how many wheels?

(buzzer chimes) Elise.

- One.

- [Todd] Yes, a rhyming political slogan from Colonial America was no taxation without?

(buzzer chimes) Sebastian.

- Representation.

- [Todd] Right.

HZ is the abbreviation for what unit of?

(buzzer chimes) Kevin.

- Hertz.

- [Todd] Hertz.

The national flag of Japan is a white background with.

(buzzer chimes) Elise.

- Red circle.

- [Todd] Yes.

Les Paul is known for inventing.

(buzzer chimes) Go ahead, Sebastian.

- The electric guitar.

- [Todd] Yes.

What hero of Greek mythology slew the Minotaur?

(buzzer chimes) Noah.

- Theseus?

- [Todd] Yes.

What French term meaning stroke of state refers to a sudden?

(buzzer chimes) Elise.

- Coup d'état.

- [Todd] Yes.

In the study of a sleep pattern, the abbreviation REM.

(buzzer chimes) Noah.

- Rapid eye movement.

- [Todd] Yes.

What dynasty ruled China from 1368 to 1644?

(buzzer blares) Ming.

Of the four track and field throwing events, which event includes throwing a long metal spear?

(buzzer chimes) Noah.

- Javelin.

- [Todd] Yes.

In Maine, the spring Equinox takes place around the 21st day of which month?

(buzzer blares) It's March.

The ampersand is a symbol used as a substitute.

(buzzer chimes) Noah.

- And.

- [Todd] Yes.

Operation Just Cause was the code name for the US invasion of what Central American country in December?

(buzzer chimes) Noah.

One more time.

- Grenada.

- No.

(Alarm blares) That's the buzzer, and the answer to that previous question is Panama, and our winning team this week is Yarmouth with 405 points.

They'll be moving on to the semifinals against Falmouth.

Our runner up, Orono, you had 285 points.

It's gonna be real sad to see you guys go.

Great job.

Congratulations to both teams.

Be sure to tune in next time for our last quarterfinal match as Bangor takes on Windham.

Thanks for watching, and we'll see you next time on "High School Quiz Show Maine!"

(intense music begins) - [Narrator] Production support for "High School Quiz Show Maine" is provided by.

- [Narrator] Energy fuels more than homes and businesses.

It fuels dreams, ideas, and growth.

Unitil champions the critical thinkers and team players of tomorrow, and is proud to support "High School Quiz Show Maine," where learning takes center stage.

- [Narrator] Welcome to another edition of "New England Survivalists," the game we all get to play.

Prepare to win.

You can ask an independent agent about Safety Insurance and learn more at the Resource Center at safetyinsurance.com.

(gentle music begins) - [Narrator] Since 1852, Bangor Savings Bank has been dedicated to keeping New Englanders at the heart of what they do.

That means investing in communities they serve and supporting families and businesses.

You matter more.

- [Narrator] And by viewers like you.

Thank you.

(intense music begins) (intense music continues) (intense music continues)