After bringing home a state title last year in convincing fashion, Scholastic Bowl remains undefeated this season. They started their championship repeat efforts off strong by taking home a regional title.
Despite losing last year’s team leaders Meilin Ranjan and Austin Mao to graduation, the Dolphins are led by senior co-captains Jackson Crickard and Kaushik Tatta, as well as starters Frankie Graninger, Robinson Chen and Clark Smith.
Since the regional tournament uses a double elimination bracket, Ocean Lakes had to get through Kellam, Tallwood and Great Bridge before defeating Tallwood again in the finals with a resounding 295-105 victory.
“With higher stakes competitions like regionals, we try to stay calm and not dwell on inevitable mistakes,” Kaushik said. “We utilize the momentum and rhythm of the game to build up our confidence and rely on our countless hours of practice to win.”
The team will now shift their focus towards the state championships on March 1, 2025, where the team will have to prepare even harder and will likely face even stiffer competition.
“Looking forward to states, we need to fine tune our methods and expand on our knowledge base; as long as we practice consistently and maintain team morale, we should be good,” Kaushik said. “We’ll definitely see tougher opponents like Lightridge, but I believe we can get past them.”
