With a 14-0 regular Quiz Bowl season, the team at Fairland Middle School is going into this week’s tournament with confidence.

Thursday from 9 a.m. to 1:30 teams from the eight school districts in Lawrence County will compete in a double elimination tournament where a team will have to lose twice before it must leave the competition. The event is sponsored by the Lawrence County Educational Service Center and will be at Ohio University Southern’s campus.

Fairland Middle’s coach is again Jim Roberts, who teaches sixth grade science at the school. He has watched the students’ interest in participating in Quiz Bowl increase over the years.

“The first year I had 35 try out. This year they were 85,” he said.

Roberts had to pick only 15 out of that number for the team at auditions held at the school. Then team members rotate with five participating at a time.

What Roberts says he looks for in a strong competitor is someone with intelligence, the ability to think quickly and a broad range of knowledge.

“Most of the kids I have, the reason they are so good at this is that they are good readers,” he said.

The team was chosen in mid-October and went into regular season competition right away at South Point Middle School. Lunchtimes were spent practicing.

Roberts finds Quiz Bowl participation advantageous for the students in a number of ways.

“No. 1, they are learning to cooperate with other kids while they practice,” he said. “And they are learning social skills.”