This year, I got to compete in the Orca Bowl, a fast-paced marine science competition that brought together my love for the ocean and my inner competitor. The event combines buzzer-style trivia with free-response team questions, all centered around eight marine science categories like biology, chemistry, geology, and technology. Each team has four members, and we quickly realized that strategy was just as important as knowledge. So we split the categories among ourselves, and I took on chemistry and technology.
The competition kicked off with a round-robin stage, where each team faced off against every other team in our group. Based on our performance in those matches, we were seeded into a single-elimination tournament bracket. From there, every round counted.
The energy during the matches was something else. There were moments when we jumped out of our seats, high-fiving each other after landing a tough question. Other times, we sat there frustrated, knowing we had the answer in our heads but weren’t quick enough on the buzzer. Some rounds we won by a huge margin, over 50 points. Other matches came down to the final question, where we won by just one. Every point felt earned, and every round tested not only what we knew, but how well we worked together.
What made Orca Bowl so memorable wasn’t just the questions or the competition. It was how much we grew as a team. By assigning categories, we each became experts in our own areas. There were moments when a question would pop up that felt completely foreign to me, but one of my teammates would nail it without hesitation. The trust we built in each other’s knowledge was key. I had never seen collaboration and individual preparation come together like that before.
For me, Orca Bowl was more than just a quiz competition. It showed me what it feels like to be truly excited about academic learning. I got to mix my competitive drive with something I genuinely care about, and that made the whole experience unforgettable.
