Northmont

Northmont (OH)
Location: Clayton, OH
Coaches	David Jones
State Championships	NAQT: 2010 & 2013, National History Bowl: 2011, ONN Brain Game: 2012 & 2014
National Championships	History Bowl (JV): 2012 & 2013
National Appearances	HSNCT: 2008-2014 PACE:2008-2014
Program Status	Unknown
School Size	Unknown
NAQT Page	link

Northmont High School is a public high school in western Ohio.

History

The Northmont Academic Challenge Team is one of the most successful teams in the West Central region of Ohio, qualifying for regionals on 16 occasions, winning the past five regional championships (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013) and winning the High Q championship on 3 occasions (with 4 other Final Four appearances).

The team was founded in 1991 by Carol Roberts, who led the team to six consecutive regional appearances and 4 consecutive league titles. After Mrs. Roberts retirement from coaching in 2004, Bill Patrizio led the team for 2 years.

David Jones took over the Northmont program midseason in 2005, competing only in GWOC league competition (4th place) and the UC Bearcat Buzzerbowl. The team reappeared on the state scene in 2006-2007, with captain Anna Henry leading the T-Bolts to a regionals appearance and a High-Q Final Four appearance.

The 2007-2008 team, captained by Joe Czupryn and featuring a very young supporting cast, captured 2 league championships, a conference MVP (Joe Czupryn- GWOC), a coach of the year award (D.Jones- GWOC), a regionals appearance, 6th place NAQT states, and qualification for PACE and NAQT nationals.

The 2008-2009 team, captained by Amma Boakye, was the beginning of Northmont's re-emergence as a regional power. The team won the GWOC conference with an undefeated record and won their first ever OAC West Central Regional title, with a narrow victory over Tippecanoe.

The 2009-2010 team, captained by Michael Czupryn and led by NASAT All-Star Brandon Williams, won 8 tournaments and the 2010 NAQT Ohio State Championship. The team, which traveled more than possibly any team in the country, won a school record 193 matches during the season. The team won its second straight GWOC Championship (undefeated) and captured its 3rd WHIO-TV High-Q Championship (and the $4,000 prize). The team won $7,000 with its 2nd place finish on the ONN Brain Game.

The 2010-2011 team was the most successful team in school history, with more than 200 wins on the season and 12 tournament championships. The team fell short of a state title, falling to Copley in the both the NAQT (finished 3rd) and OAC (finished 2nd) State Tournaments, despite beating eventual NAQT champ Olmsted Falls by over 100 points at the NAQT State Championship. The team was led by 2-time NASAT all-Ohio player Brandon Williams, who was flanked by a very balanced team of Michael Czupryn, Dan Welch and Emily Bingham.

The team posted a 13th place finish at the NAQT HSNCT, posting playoff wins over Bellarmine and Thomas Jefferson A before falling to Dupont Manual and DCC B in the playoffs. The team finished 17th at the PACE NSC, posting preliminary wins over Auburn and Thomas Jefferson A, before falling in a playoff to Alpharetta and St. Anselms for a spot in the 9th-16th bracket. The team ran their bracket undefeated on Sunday for the 17th place finish.

The 2011-2012 team was led by a pair of freshmen- Sam Blizzard and Tori Amos. As a 8th grader, Blizzard was the 3rd highest scorer at the NAQT High School State Championship, the 17th highest scorer at the NAQT HSNCT, and the top "freshman" scorer at the PACE NSC (despite being an 8th grader). Blizzard led 8th grade teams to several victories over Ohio high school powers Warren G. Harding and St. Charles during the 2010-2011 season, as well as victories over Danville, Simon Kenton and La Jolla. The 2011 OAC State Championship prevented Northmont's Middle School team from competing in the first event NAQT MSNCT.

In 2011-2012, Blizzard was the 4th highest individual scorer at HSNCT and 9th highest scorer at the PACE NSC. Northmont won the state championship of the ONN Brain Game and the National Championship of the Freshman/Sophomore National History Bowl. The team combined to win 11 tournaments, both the GWOC and the MVAC and their fourth consecutive West Central regional.

The 2012-2013 team is again led by the combination of Sam Blizzard and Tori Amos, now sophomores. The team began the season with a victory at the Ezell-Harding tournament, defeating DCC A and Chattahoochee on their way to the tournament championship. Wins have followed at the Fall Kick-off Tournament, Copley "No Frills" Tournament and Fisher Catholic Golden Shamrock. The team won the JV division of the SW Ohio National History Bowl to qualify for the national championship, and Blizzard defeated Amos in the finals of the History Bee after both had been the only players in the field to clear their rooms in the prelims. On February 4th, sophomore Tori Amos appeared in her quarterfinal episode of Teen Jeopardy, leading the entire match before betting conservatively to ensure her spot in the semifinals. Tori was eliminated in the semifinals, but won $10,000 in the process. Picking up with their season in January 2013, Northmont defeated Macomb (IL) to win the IMSANITY mirror in Bloomington, IL, and then defeated Richard Montgomery (MD) to win the Solon NAQT tournament. Northmont then defeated Solon in the championship to win the NAQT Ohio State Championship, their 2nd NAQT state title.

Notable Alumni

(* denotes team captain)

- Jonathan Yagisawa (2013)

- Ryan Kirby (2012)

- Breanna Dominguez (2012)

- Brandon Williams (2011)

- Michael Czupryn* (2011)

- Dan Welch (2011)

- Emily Bingham (2011)

- Miranda DeHart (2010)

- Amma Boakye* (2009)

- Joe Czupryn* (2008)

- Amanda Beaver (2008)

- Anna Henry* (2007)

- Nikki Herman (2007)

- Eboni Carlton (2007)

- Joel Helton* (1999)

- Kevin Shuler (1999)

- Rob Brower (1999)

- David Jones* (1997)

- Keith Hensler* (1995)

- Ryan Overfield (1995)

Northmont Academic Challenge Accomplishments

2010 NAQT State Champions

2013 NAQT State Champions

2011 National History Bowl Ohio State Champions

2012 ONN Brain Game State Champions

2012 JV National History Bowl National Champions

2013 JV National History Bowl National Champions

22 GMVC, GWOC and MVAC League or Tournament Championships

1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000 (GMVC)

2002, 2003, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 (GWOC)

2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 (MVAC)

Qualified for OAC Regional Competition 18 times

1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

1991-1996—finished 3rd place

2003- Regional Runner-up

2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 Regional Champion

Qualified for OAC State Tournament 6 times

2003—8th place

2009, 2010 - Tied for 5th place

2011, 2012- 2nd place

2013- State Champion

Qualified (and attended) National Championship Competition 14 times

2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 (t-13th), 2012 (t-33rd), 2013 (t-21st), 2014(NAQT HSNCT)

2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 (PACE NSC)

Hold 4 WHIO-TV High-Q Finals Appearances

1995—first place

1998—first place

2002—second place

2010-first place

3 Other Final Four Appearances

2013-2014 Roster

Seniors: Hao Tran, Erin Laing

Juniors: Sam Blizzard

Sophomores: Robbie Spilker, Meghan Jenkins, Helena Jenkins, Maggie Laing, Aubri Pritchett, Brendan Jenkins, Rachel Tracy

Freshmen: Kara Combs, Lauren Papp, Rylee Fitzgerald, Betina Dobles, Cameron Royce

Coach: David Jones ('97 Alumni of the team)

Assistant Coach: Emily Bingham ('11 Alumni of the team)