Rowdy Raider

Tournament Formerly Known as Rowdy Raider

The Rowdy Raider Invitational is an annual quiz bowl tournament that was previously held at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, and is now held at Northmont High School. (The tournament moved locations after the tournament director left his job at Wright State to move to Northmont). The tournament director of the event is David Jones, quiz bowl coach at Northmont High School. With the exception of the initial tournament, the tournament is hosted on the first Saturday in December, and used NAQT IS questions.

History

To date, there have been 7 iterations of the Rowdy Raider Invitational. These tournaments are summarized below:

Rowdy Raider I: The first edition of the tournament was held in April, 2007. Despite only 12 teams attending the event, the field was very strong, featuring Dunbar led by Papa Chakravarthy, Garfield Heights, led by Dan Humphrey, Tippecanoe led by Ryan Haas and Fisher Catholic led by Steven Wellstead. The preliminary brackets were won by Paul Laurence Dunbar A and Paul Laurence Dunbar B from Lexington, Kentucky. In the playoff bracket, Walnut Hills captured the championship, defeating Tippecanoe 370-300 in the finals.

Rowdy Raider II: The second edition of the tournament was held in December 2007 and featured 20 teams. Paul Laurence Dunbar A defeated Paul Laurence Dunbar B in the finals, with Russell defeating Defiance in the consolation match to claim 3rd place.

Rowdy Raider III: The third edition of the tournament was held in December 2008 and featured 27 teams, broken into three preliminary divisions of 9 teams each. The three divisions were won by Russell (KY), Simon Kenton (KY) and St. Charles. Simon Kenton defeated Walnut Hills 260-180 to claim the championship.

Rowdy Raider IV: The fourth edition of the tournament was held in December 2009 and featured 32 teams. A power matching format was used that was well-received by teams in attendance (except for South Range, who lost an early match they shouldn't have, and subsequently missed the top 16 after posting a 2-3 record). After the morning power-seeding, the top 16 teams were divided into 4 groups of 4, the winner of each qualifying into a single elimination playoff. At the end of the day, Dunbar A defeated Solon 435-110 to claim the tournament title.

Rowdy Raider V: The fifth edition of the tournament was held in December 2010 and saw one of the best fields to ever attend an Ohio quiz bowl tournament, including all of the Ohio and Kentucky powers, plus Chattahoochee and Parkersburg. Preliminary brackets were won by Northmont, Olmsted Falls, Walnut Hills and Parkersburg. The top 8 teams were then divided into 2 divisions of 4, which were won by Northmont and Olmsted Falls, who played for the title, which was won by Northmont 375-275.

Rowdy Raider VI: This was the first year in which the tournament shifted locations to Northmont High School. 30 teams participated in the tournament. Preliminary brackets were won by Dunbar, Northmont, Olmsted Falls, Warren G Harding, and Danville. Teams were then re-bracketed into 5 6-team brackets, with the top two parallel brackets still eligible for the title. Northmont defeated Dunbar to win their bracket at 10-0, while Olmsted Falls emerged from a circle of death with Sycamore and Warren G Harding to win their bracket. In the championship game, Olmsted Falls defeated Northmont 370-265, avenging their loss in last year's final.

Rowdy Raider VII: The tournament was again held at Northmont High School. 28 teams participated in the tournament. Preliminary brackets were won by Northmont, Fisher Catholic, St. Charles, Walnut Hills and Sycamore. Teams were re-bracketed into divisions of 6 (divisions of 5 in lower brackets), and played another full round robin. In the end, Northmont and Sycamore emerged at 10-0 for the day, and competed in the championship match, which was won by Sycamore on the last question 415-345.

Champions

Rowdy Raider I: Walnut Hills (OH)

Rowdy Raider II: Paul Laurence Dunbar (KY)

Rowdy Raider III: Simon Kenton (KY)

Rowdy Raider IV: Paul Laurance Dunbar (KY)

Rowdy Raider V: Northmont (OH)

Rowdy Raider VI: Olmsted Falls (OH)

Rowdy Raider VII: Sycamore (OH)

Consolation Bracket Champions

Rowdy Raider I: Fisher Catholic (OH)

Rowdy Raider II: Loveland (OH)

Rowdy Raider III: No consolation bracket

Rowdy Raider IV: South Range (OH)

Rowdy Raider V: Warren G. Harding (OH) (winner of 3rd place flight- 9th overall)

Rowdy Raider VI: Dunbar B (KY) (winner of 3rd place flight- 13th overall)

Rowdy Raider VII: Fleming County (KY) (winner of 3rd place flight- 13th overall)