Eldon
| Eldon | |
| Location: Eldon, MO | |
|---|---|
| Coaches | Nick Dissen |
| National Appearances | 2019, 2021 NSC; 2022 SSNCT |
| Program Status | Active |
| School Size | 441 (grades 9-11) |
| NAQT Page | link |
Eldon High School is is a public high school in central Missouri, currently competing in Class 4 (Class 3, before the 2021 MSHSAA Realignment). They have regularly attended the Tri-County Conference since at least 2008.
History
Eldon's quizbowl team is believed to have existed since at least 1998, with the first known picture of the team taken in the spring of 2002 that included then-coach David Herren. The first known competition results appeared in a forum post in April 2008, regarding the conference results that year. [1]
Eldon achieved a small amount of early notoriety with two conference wins 2011 and 2012 and district titles in 2013 and 2014. While there are no known individual statistics from the time, All-District results and accounts from the time imply that most of the scoring was done by a player named Mikayla Petchell.
The team attended few events until the 2016-17 season, when coach Suzanne Henley retired and Sally Garbi decided to take the position. Their first major success was at the 2018 Sparta Fall Tournament, placing third and gaining the school's first ever bid to PACE NSC. Their success continued when Tuscumbia player Caleb Martonfi transferred to the school, helping lead the team to a 4th-place state finish in 2019. Their first national performance was not as successful, going 3-12 and placing 93rd out of 96 teams.
After a brief yet equally-competitive 2019-20 season, Sally Garbi retired, leaving her spot to coaches Emily Waller and Nick Dissen. The team went into 2020-21 primarily led by Jacob Groves and Connor Lee, but was once again unable to break out of the bottom bracket at the 2021 NSC.
Nick Dissen was able to fully assume the coaching position the following year, and the team under Connor Lee tied for 7th at the 2022 SSNCT. During the 2022-23 season, the team won its first district title in four years under a team captained by Matthew Pollett.