Bloomington
| Bloomington Purple Raiders | |
| |
|---|---|
| Location: Bloomington, Illinois | |
| Coaches | Tom Waterson and Michael Riley |
| Program Status | Unknown |
| School Size | Unknown |
| NAQT Page | link |
Bloomington High School is a public high school in Bloomington, Illinois. Its nickname is the Purple Raiders. It competes as a member of the Big 12 Conference, which represents most of the large public schools in eastern and central Illinois. It also competes in Class AA, the "large school" division, of the Illinois High School Association's (IHSA) State Championship Series.
History
Bloomington has perenially been one of the strongest quiz bowl programs in Central Illinois seeing several successful stretches under various coaches & led by all-star players. The Purple Raiders has qualified for the IHSA State Finals in every decade of the State tournament since 1990.
Between 1998-2008, the team was coached by IHSSBCA Hall of Fame coach, Debbie Voorhees, who saw over 500 victories during her tenure. One of those early teams under Voorhees tenure was led by Andrew Ullsperger. In 2006 & 2007, despite boasting back-to-back 80-win seasons Bloomington narrowly missed a State trophy falling to Carbondale on the final question both years. During the late 2000's and mid-2010's the team was coached by Tim Coughlan where the Purple Raiders would again return to State three years in a row, but would still fall shy of an elusive State trophy. It would be almost another decade until under the leadership of Tom Waterson and behind the play of ace Soren Gjesfjeld that Bloomington saw another resurgence that saw the Purple Raiders decisively place 4th at Masonic State and finally defeat Carbondale at IHSA to advance to the trophy round, finishing 4th to IMSA.
Event Hosting
Due to its geographic location and large facilities, Bloomington has been well suited to host many quiz bowl tournaments and events over the years. These have included IHSSBCA Kickoff, IHSSBCA Turnabout, IHSA Regionals, IHSA Sectionals, Masonic Sectionals, and the IHSSBCA SchoBowlFest.
Bloomington High School hosted the NAQT Illinois State Championship in 2013. Since 2015, Bloomington has hosted the Masonic State Tournament.
Noted Team Accomplishments
- IHSSBCA Kickoff wins (7): 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2021, 2022, 2023
- IHSSBCA Novice wins (3): 2012, 2013, 2023
- IHSA Regional Titles (14): 1990, 1991, 1996, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2021, 2022, 2023
- IHSA Sectional Titles (10): 1990, 1991, 1996, 2006, 2007, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2022, 2023
- Masonic Sectional Titles (7): 2007, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2022, 2023
- IHSA State Tournament: Fourth Place: 2023
- Masonic State Tournament, Third Place: 2007, Second Place: 2015, Fourth Place: 2023
- NAQT State, Third Place: 2014
- PACE NSC, 15th Place: 2014, 13th Place: 2015
- HSNCT: (t-49) 2007, (105th) 2014, (t-34) 2015
IHSSBCA Individual Awards
The following were honored by the Illinois High School Scholastic Bowl Coaches Association (IHSSBCA) for outstanding play through their All-Sectional/All-State Program. Each sectional comprises roughly 24 geographically concentrated teams, and thus roughly 125 starting players. Through the 2006-07 season, the top ten players were recognized in each sectional,(starting with 2007-08, the number was raised to 15) with teams restricted to no more than two nominations (three nominations starting in 2007-08). There are twenty All-State awards given each year (10 First Team, 10 Second Team) in each of Illinois' two classes.
All-Sectional Honorees
- 2001-02: Chris Temple, Ryan O'Shea
- 2002-03: Nicole Weidner, Sarmad Gilani
- 2003-04: Anthony Gardner
- 2004-05: Kristina Warren
- 2005-06: Michael Lieder, Kristina Warren
- 2006-07: Hunter Fast, Kristna Warren
- 2007-08: Hunter Fast
- 2008-09: Calvin Quilty
- 2010-11: Stae Schipper-Reyes
- 2011-12: Stae Schipper-Reyes, Spencer Tracy
- 2012-13: Stae Schipper-Reyes, Spencer Tracy
- 2013-14: Alston Boyd, Stae Schipper-Reyes, Nathaniel Smith
- 2014-2015: Alston Boyd, Sam Emmerson, Evan Johnson
- 2015-2016: Hanson Hao, Meredith Pounds
- 2016-2017: Vinay Vattakuti
- 2021-2022: Soren Gjesfjeld
- 2022-2023: Soren Gjesfjeld
- 2023-2024: Soren Gjesfjeld
All-State Honorees
- 2001-02: Chris Temple (2nd Team)
- 2005-06: Kristina Warren (1st Team)
- 2006-07: Hunter Fast (1st Team), Kristina Warren (1st Team)
- 2007-08: Hunter Fast (1st Team)
- 2008-09: Calvin Quilty (2nd Team)
- 2013-14: Alston Boyd (1st Team)
- 2014-2015: Alston Boyd (1st Team)
- 2014-2015: Sam Emmerson (2nd Team)
- 2021-2022: Soren Gjesfjeld (1st Team)
- 2022-2023: Soren Gjesfjeld (1st Team)
- 2023-2024: Soren Gjesfjeld (1st Team)
Playing for Team Illinois
- Kristina Warren (2006)
- Hunter Fast (2007)
- Soren Gjesfjeld (2022, 2024)