Students busy preparing for state tourney

Fast fingers and a quick wit are two things 20 students in the Brainerd lakes area will need in the state Knowledge Bowl tournament.

Two Knowledge Bowl teams from Brainerd and one team each from Little Falls and Staples-Motley will compete Tuesday and Wednesday.

The students at all three schools have been preparing for the state competition.

"It is hard to prepare for it," said Parker Kienholz, a senior at Brainerd High School, who will be making his third trip to state. "You know what you know. You basically need to listen to the question and know which direction it is going."

Kienholz, who has been in Knowledge Bowl for three years, said he enjoys the competitive nature of the activity. His strongest subjects are mathematics, American history and current events.

Jason Houle, a BHS junior, said he's strongest in mathematics. Sophomore Max Kuehn is on the team with Kienholz and Houle. Kuehn joined the program because he is good at trivia. He said one of his strong subjects is religion.

Logan Mohs, a sophomore on the second Brainerd team, has been in Knowledge Bowl for four years and will be making his first trip to state. He enjoys the activity because he likes random trivia. Mohs is the team's spokesperson, which means he gives the judges the team's final answer.

Sam Walker, a BHS sophomore, said his strength in Knowledge Bowl is he is good at figuring out what the question is about. Students in a Knowledge Bowl competition listen to a question and once they think they know what the answer may be they'll press a buzzer. Many times students will press the buzzer before the entire question is read. The team who presses the buzzer first has the first opportunity to answer the question correctly to win the point.

Kara Richards, sophomore, Brainerd, has been in Knowledge Bowl for three years. She said she knows a lot of weird facts and the only useful place to use these facts is in Knowledge Bowl.

Andrew Paskewitz, a junior at Staples-Motley, said the team has been practicing on their own and as a team. He said the team does well together and has fun. He said he is strong in mathematics and sports.

Brianne Daniels, a junior at Little Falls, said she is excited to be going to state for the first time. She said the team has been practicing and reading books to prepare.

JENNIFER STOCKINGER can be reached at jennifer.stockinger@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5851.