The Ridgefield High School academic team closed out one of its most successful years yet with a determined run at the 2025 High School National Championship Tournament in Atlanta over Memorial Day weekend.
Seniors James Haddix and Nathan Walker, junior Sadie Ford, and sophomores Katie Thiel and Margaret Turner comprised the standout varsity team that earlier this year won the state Knowledge Bowl title and tied the all-time state record for the highest morning round score.
Haddix, Ford, Thiel and Turner went on to represent Ridgefield in quiz bowl nationals. Walker, who helped secure the state championship, did not attend the national tournament due to the event’s four-player roster limit.
The national tournament, held in late May, featured 336 teams from across the U.S., the District of Columbia and Guatemala. Ridgefield posted a 4-6 record in the preliminaries, picking up key wins but narrowly missing the playoff bracket.
“They beat some top-tier schools, and I think even against the schools where we lost, it was close,” Coach David Jacobson said. “They were right there with the best.”
The two-day competition tested students in a range of subjects, including science, literature, current events, and pop culture. Matches were fast-paced and required both depth and speed of knowledge.
“It’s a marathon, a mental marathon,” Jacobson said.
Unlike Knowledge Bowl, which emphasizes collaboration and allows students time to confer as a team, Quiz Bowl is based on individual buzzer speed and immediate recall. Questions are longer and follow a pyramidal format, starting with obscure clues that get easier, and incorrect early buzzes carry point penalties.
Despite missing the playoffs, the team secured some victories in the consolation bracket and walked away with valuable experience and pride in their performance.
“We had a goal for ourselves of being a playoff team this year,” Jacobson said. “I’d say it’s a little bit disappointing not making the playoffs, but they still did so well.”
The trip wasn’t all competition. The team also made time to visit the Georgia Aquarium, a favorite stop just blocks from the tournament hotels.
“It was the best thing I’ve ever done in my entire life,” Margaret Turner said. “Whale sharks, alligators, eels—you could pet stingrays and sea turtles. It was incredible.”
Ridgefield’s team still had a strong year.
One of the standout stories was Haddix, who stepped into the team captain role following the graduation of last year’s senior leader. Haddix anchored a young team made up of one junior and two sophomores.
“I think I did feel some pressure,” Haddix said. “Going into the summer of last year, my main priority was like I wanna make sure that all of us are like ready for this.”
Haddix led the way in organizing summer scrimmages, studying materials and helping prepare the team for both the regional and state seasons. Under his leadership, Ridgefield dominated the Southwest Washington regional, swept every round at state, and secured the state title while tying the all-time state scoring record.
“This year’s team is hard working in a lot of ways,” Jacobson said. “They put in many, many hundreds of hours of systematic studying.”
Haddix was also one of the tournament’s top individual performers, ranking 17th nationally out of approximately 1,700 competitors.
For Haddix, who will graduate this month and plans to study computer science and mathematics at Washington State University, the year was about more than scores.
“I think just generally the rapport between teams we competed against was probably one of my favorite parts of the whole trip,” Haddix said. “There’s sort of a connection that you get there… it’s really fun to compete against them and talk to them.”
He also credited the Ridgefield community for making the trip possible.
“We’re extremely grateful,” Haddix said. “The Ridgefield Foundation organizing that matching fundraiser and the whole community stepping up to donate… it’s just really incredible.”
Looking ahead, the team’s foundation appears solid.
“I feel very confident,” Haddix said. “They’ve worked extremely hard… and I think they’ve got a shot at taking state home yet again next year.”
There was no national Knowledge Bowl tournament this year, meaning the Quiz Bowl event served as Ridgefield’s only national-level competition. Jacobson plans to bring next year’s team back to state and hopefully nationals again, confident that the underclassmen are ready to lead.
