Nine Shawnee County high school teams to take part in Quest competition

Nine Shawnee County high school teams will participate in the 2008-09 Quest academic competition Dec. 6 at Washburn University. The contest allows teams of high school students from across Kansas to compete against one another in answering questions on topics such as art, literature, history, math and science.

Teams earning the top 16 scores advance to the finals and return to Topeka several times for taping sessions. The televised Quest competition will air on KTWU from February through May 2009, when the championship team will be named.

The contest is co-sponsored by KTWU-PBS station and Washburn University. The Kansas National Education Association and Quest Resource Corporation are partial underwriters of Quest tapings.


Schools and team members are listed below.

Cair Paravel-Latin team members are:
Sam Blasi, senior, son of Linda Blasi
Thomas Clauson, junior, and Wesley Clauson, sophomore, sons of David and Rachel Clauson
Patrick DeDonder, sophomore, son of Tim and Cathy DeDonder
Amanda Nigus, junior, daughter of Daren and Debbie Nigus
The coach is James Seidel.

Hayden team members are:
James Doyle, sophomore, son of Tom and Jeanne Doyle
Eric Fletcher, junior, son of Michael and Ann Fletcher
Sarah Keffer, junior, daughter of Michael and Beverly Keffer
Joe Mayer, junior, son of Joe and Mary Mayer
Will Quaney, junior, son of Gene and Jill Quaney, Auburn
Alex Sutton, sophomore, son of Nyle and Katherine Sutton
The coach is Mike Zeleznak.

Highland Park team members are:
Fred McDowell, junior, son of Patrick and Vereta McDowell
Gerald Schmidt, junior, son of Randy and Kerry Schmidt
Dominic Stamps, sophomore, son of Michael and Andrea Stamps
Dylan Walthall, sophomore, son of Pamela Long
The coach is Fred Willer.

Rossville team members are:
Amanda Cahill, senior, daughter of Katherine Haynes and John Cahill
Kristina Cook, senior, daughter of Theresa Cook and Michael Cook
Caitlin Curran, senior, daughter of John and Tonya Curran
Lakota McCune, senior, daughter of Jim and Phyllis McCune
Riley Martinson, sophomore, son of John and Vickie Martinson
Savana Van Vleck, senior, daughter of Clifford and Kimberly Van Vleck
The coach is Jason Broaddus.

Seaman High team members are:
Jessica Barranco, senior, daughter of Al and Mary Barranco
Josh Christensen, senior, son of Dewayne and Lori Christensen
Andrew Lawson, junior, son of Keith and Beth Lawson
Clay Wayant, senior, son of Dawn Wayant and Bruce Wayant
Michael Wollin, senior, son of Robert and Karen Wallin
The coach is Don Koon.

Shawnee Heights team members are:
Ryan Aeschliman, junior, son of Robyn Aeschliman
Rian Browne, sophomore, son of Ruth Browne
Alek Eskilson, freshman, son of Kurt and Melissa Eskilson
Jordan Moore, senior, son of Holly Moore
Dustin Mulligan, junior, son of Tara Mulligan
Nathanael Simerl, freshman, son of James Simerl
The coach is Holly Wetmore.

Topeka High team members are:
Michael Meyers, senior, son of Bruce and Kathleen Myers
Patrick Dittamo, senior, son of Michael and Karen Dittamo
Daniel Kennedy, sophomore, son of Brandon and Marta Kennedy
Nicholas Henriquez, freshman, son of Francis Henriquez and Laura Stephenson
Darwin May, junior, son of Brad and Andrea May
David Wang, sophomore, son of Chanming Duan and Lizhao Wang
The coach is Julie Riphahn.

Topeka West team members are:
John Brant, senior, son of David and Deba Brant
Zhen Deng, senior, son of Jian Deng and Yan Pang
Katie Frizzell, senior, daughter of Terry and Karen Frizzell
James Lawson, senior, son of Craig and Pamela Lawson
Cameron Seals-Schwanke, junior, son of Clyde Schwanke and Caroline Seals
The coaches are Ryan McCoy and Deborah Abbo.

Washburn Rural team members are:
Theodore Christensen, junior, son of Theodore and Kelly Christensen
Samuel Ho, junior, son of Jennifer Ho and Sam Ho
Logan Gasper, senior, son of Shelly and Steve Starr and Kerry Gasper
Austin Schauer, senior, son of Andrew and Pamela Schauer
Benjamin Wong, junior, son of Chuck and Lily Wong
The coach is Robin Corbin.