After seizing the national championship title last April, the Garnet Valley Hi-Q team is back and readier than ever to dominate the competition and awe audiences with their extensive knowledge of obscure trivia. This season’s team was selected in the first week of October using results from a written test and a series of buzzer rounds assessing knowledge of prerequisite material distributed to prospective members in June. Ten of the seventeen Hi-Q hopefuls secured spots on the 2017 team, seven of which are returning members, including senior Patrick Stoyer, juniors Natalia Orlovsky, Nathan Katragadda, Andrew Li, and Lainie Beauchemin, and sophomores Sai Mamidala and Jeffrey Lin, leaving three spots for newcomers Ryan Baldino, Xavier Zhang, and Neeraj Shenoy to fill. The Hi-Q equivalent of a first string, the stage lineup, has also been tentatively determined through another series of competitive buzzer round in which team members vied for their chance to occupy one of the four onstage positions. The new team’s first showing will be at the practice meet on Thursday, November 3rd at Springfield High School, during which all of Delaware County’s teams will re-familiarize themselves with the rules and competition format using questions from last year. Garnet Valley’s first official meet will take place on December 12th in our own auditorium against Haverford and Radnor. Remember, teachers are welcome to bring their second period classes down to the auditorium to spectate, so be sure to go see them in action next month!