Bishop Sullivan Catholic High School wins Blue Crab Bowl

First Place Winners 2009 Blue Crab Bowl A team from Bishop Sullivan Catholic High School in Virginia Beach won the 2009 Blue Crab Bowl, which was held at VIMS on February 21. From L: Congressman Rob Wittman (1st District), Coach William Dunn, Team Captain Christine Chesley, Jack Hall, Mary Chang, Mike Stolz, Nate Taylor, and Virginia Sea Grant Director Dr. Troy Hartley. Photo by Margaret Pizer.

Second Place Winners 2009 Blue Crab Bowl The team from Grafton High School in Yorktown took 2nd place in the 2009 Blue Crab Bowl. From L: Coach Jane Dodge, Bobby Donze, Congressman Rob Wittman (1st District), Team Captain Greyson Yang, Fangdi Sun, Brad Sturk, and Virginia Sea Grant Director Dr. Troy Hartley. Photo by Margaret Pizer.

Third Place Winners 2009 Blue Crab Bowl The team from the Chesapeake Bay Governor’s School-Glenns Campus took 3rd place in the 2009 Blue Crab Bowl. From L: Congressman Rob Wittman (1st District), Greg Dorsey, Michael Sanderson, Seth Theuerkauf, Cody Voight, Coach Sara Chaves Beam, and VA Sea Grant Director Dr. Troy Hartley. Photo by Margaret Pizer.

Fourth Place Winners 2009 Blue Crab Bowl The team from Seton School of Manassas took 4th place in the 2009 Blue Crab Bowl, which was held at VIMS on February 21. From L: Congressman Rob Wittman (1st District), Kevin Elam, Catie Bergmann, Libby Wittman, Coach Patricia von Reyn, Alex Harrill, Team Captain Rachel LaVigne, and Virginia Sea Grant Director Dr. Troy Hartley. Photo by Margaret Pizer.

by Carol Hopper-Brill | February 25, 2009

Bishop Sullivan Catholic High School of Virginia Beach repeated as champions of the annual Blue Crab Bowl, a regional academic competition that tests students’ knowledge of the oceans.

The team will represent Virginia in the national National Ocean Science Bowl (NOSB^©) in Washington, D.C. on April 25-27, facing 24 other regional champions from around the nation.

The Blue Crab Bowl is a cooperative effort between the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, College of William and Mary; Virginia Sea Grant; and Old Dominion University’s Department of Ocean, Earth, and Atmospheric Sciences and Center for Coastal Physical Oceanography. Seventy-five faculty, staff, and graduate students from both institutions donated many hours of their time to ensure the success of the event. Virginia’s contest, now in its twelth year, is among the inaugural marine science bowls started in 1998.

This year's Blue Crab Bowl, held at VIMS, featured 16 teams representing 15 high schools from all corners of the Commonwealth, from Warrenton to Virginia Beach. Eighty students spent the day in heated tournament competition focused on the marine sciences. Grafton High School took second place. In third place was Chesapeake Bay Governor’s School-Glenns Campus, follwed by Seton School of Manassas in fourth place.

At this year’s Awards Ceremony, Congressman Rob Wittman (1st District) addressed the audience of 200. He applauded the students’ accomplishments and encouraged them to apply their knowledge, critical thinking, and teamwork skills to help solve the challenges facing Chesapeake Bay, Virginia, and the Mid-Atlantic region. Also attending the Awards Ceremony as a special presenter was Virginia Sea Grant Director Dr. Troy Hartley.

Using questions designed by marine scientists and educators, the contest tested students’ knowledge of oceanography, geology, biology, maritime history, and policy. Guided by their teacher coaches, students broadened their awareness and understanding of the oceans as they prepared for the competition. The Bowl provides a forum for students who excel in math and science to receive regional and national recognition for their diligence and talent. During Saturday's event, the competition started with a field of 16 teams, with four emerging as top contenders by late afternoon.

Competing teams included:

Bishop Sullivan Catholic High School – A Team, Virginia Beach
Bishop Sullivan Catholic High School – B Team, Virginia Beach
Broadwater Academy, Exmore
Chesapeake Bay Governor’s School-Glenns Campus, Tappahannock
Churchland High School, Portsmouth
Fauquier High School, Warrenton
Fredericksburg Academy, Fredericksburg
Governor’s School for Science & Technology – New Horizons, Hampton
Grafton High School, Yorktown
Isle of Wight Academy, Isle of Wight
Maury High School, Norfolk
Patrick Henry High School, Ashland
Piedmont Governor’s School for Math, Science & Technology, Collinsville
Richmond Christian School, Chesterfield
Saint Christopher’s School, Richmond
Seton School, Manassas

NOSB is a program of the Consortium for Ocean Leadership in Washington, DC. NOSB seeks to interest students in ocean science as a college major and potential career. Through 25 regional competitions across the nation, NOSB also provides an educational forum intended to generate student interest in the ocean sciences; improve awareness of our oceans, coasts, and Great Lakes; and create an “ocean literate” society that can meet the ocean challenges of the future. During 2009, an expected 2,000 students from nearly 400 high schools from around the country will participate in this twelfth annual event.

Local sponsors of the regional Blue Crab Bowl include: Virginia Sea Grant’s Marine Advisory Program; Virginia Sea Grant; the Virginia Institute of Marine Science; Old Dominion University’s College of Sciences, Department of Ocean, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences; the Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve in Virginia; Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center; the Virginia Living Museum; Mid-Atlantic Marine Education Association; the National Marine Educators Association, and Leave Only Bubbles/What If Scientific.