Last weekend, Harker’s upper school National Science Bowl team A qualified for the national finals after going undefeated in the regional competition at Stanford’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory. The team comprises seniors Swapnil Garg, Rajiv Movva, Derek Yen and Shaya Zarkesh, and sophomore Emily Liu, all coached by Gary Blickenstaff. This marks the second straight year Harker has qualified for the national finals.

Utilizing a game show format with a buzzer system, the National Science Bowl tests student knowledge on a variety of topics, including biology, chemistry, mathematics and physics. The competition was established in 1991 by the United States Department of Energy with the goal of “making math and science fun for students to encourage them to pursue studies and careers in math and science,” according to the NSB website.

This year’s national finals are set to take place April 26-30 in Washington, D.C.

Update, Feb. 14: SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory’s Michael Ross recently posted a recap of the Feb. 3 competition that includes more details about the event, such as the app created by a Stanford Online High School student that was of great use to competitors that weekend.