Delco Hi-Q enters the championship round of the 73rd season following semifinal wins by second-seeded Haverford High School and third-seeded Delaware County Christian School. Both teams hosted their respective competitions and won, although neither match was an easy runaway.
Delaware County Christian School and competitors Radnor and Penncrest High Schools started off strong at the first Semifinal Contest of the week. At the halfway point, Radnor led by DCCS and Penncrest trailed by 5 points. In the second half, Radnor High School held the lead, but by the final question they were only up by four points. DCCS secured the win by just one point, however after a Radnor appeal, a tiebreaker contest was held the next day. Both DCCS and Radnor remained focused and the tiebreaker came down to the final question, answered correctly by Delaware County Christian School. Final Scores- Delaware County Christian School: 44; Radnor: 44; Penncrest: 36; Tiebreaker Scores: Delaware County Christian School: 20; Radnor: 16.
An advantage of competing online, the snowy forecast did not disrupt the second Semifinal Contest of the week. Haverford held the home team position with Upper Darby in the second and Springfield High School in the third position. The scores remained tied through much of the first half, with the teams separated by only 3 points at intermission. Haverford captured a big lead in the second half, but Springfield caught up in the final few questions. Once again the final score came down to the last question in Math. Haverford answered the Math question correctly, which gave them the win. Final Scores- Haverford: 47; Upper Darby: 30; Springfield: 43.
Hi-Q provides a challenging competition for the contestants and even more challenging this year as it was completely hosted online. These wins earned Delaware County Christian School and Haverford the opportunity to advance to the Championship Contest against Garnet Valley on Friday, March 5 at 11 am.
Championship Teams
Defending Champions, Garnet Valley High School, have a long history of successful Delco Hi-Q seasons. They have earned six titles since 2011, including the past 2 years. This is the school’s eighth consecutive Championship appearance and twenty-sixth overall since 1977. Faculty Advisor Lesley Arensberg has been coaching the team for fifteen years and fellow advisor Sandra Dubnansky is in her tenth year.
Haverford High School are no newcomers to the Championship contest- they hold 11 Championship titles since joining Hi-Q, with the most recent being just three years ago. Faculty Advisor, Laurie Grady is in her fourth year leading the team.
Delaware County Christian School joined the competition in 1993, replacing St. James High School, and is making their sixthoverall championship appearance. The school won third place in 1995, 2006, 2012, 2018 and 2019. Team coach Thom Houghton is a twenty-two year faculty advisor.
Prizes will be awarded and All-Delco Hi-Q teams will be recognized at the Virtual Partners in Education Celebration being held April 22 via Zoom. The virtual event will also honor Excellence in Teaching awardees and scholarship recipients.
To see the scoreboard and schedule, and to learn how Hi-Q competitions work, visit www.DelcoHiQ.org. Follow us on Facebook, and Twitter to get breaking Delco Hi-Q news.
Delco Hi-Q is a partnership between Delaware County Intermediate Unit (DCIU) and Franklin Mint Federal Credit Union Foundation. FMFCU Vice President Rick Durante serves as Director and Quizmaster and FMFCU CSR Program Manager Danielle Griffin is Hi-Q Assistant Director. In addition to support from the 20 participating schools, Franklin Mint Federal Credit Union and the Wilbur C. and Betty Lea Henderson Foundation are the primary corporate sponsors. Additional support comes from longtime sponsor Kimberly-Clark Chester Operations and the Delaware County Daily Times.
