Congratulations to Gunston’s Academic Team, who traveled to Chicago for the NAQT Small School National Academic Team Championships. During the tournament, teams compete in a head-to-head quiz bowl format to answer questions from all areas of knowledge, including history, literature, science, fine arts, current events, popular culture, sports, and more. The team is coached by Gunston’s Head of School, John Lewis.

Gunston finished as the top scoring team from Maryland and in the top 50 teams overall. The team was led by Senior captain Justin McCubbin, who ended his academic team career as the second all-time leading scorer, with nearly 3,000 total points. Also excelling were Seniors Margaret Randolph, who finished as the team’s 3rd highest scorer in team history, with over 2,000 points, and Lily Brantner, who finishes as the team’s 5th all-time leading scorer. Senior Eli Moore, who only joined the team this year in earnest but made a major impact, scored nearly 20 points per game during the tournament.  

“I can’t say enough about the dedication of this group of Seniors,” reflected Mr. Lewis. “Justin, Lily, and Margaret showed up to practice early in 9th grade, and since then their dedication to this team has been extraordinary. They’ve gone to over a dozen tournaments together, and it has been a delight to see them grow and thrive. Eli only joined this year, but it feels like he’s been with us since the beginning. As a coach, I’m going to miss them.” 

Looking ahead, the team’s future is bright with sophomore AJ Friedrich finishing as the 58th overall scorer in a field of over 300 participants, and he was in the top 10 scorers among tenth graders. “AJ did extremely well in this tournament,” shared Mr. Lewis, “and he has a very, very bright future as a member of the team.”