Bedford Defeats Merrimack in GRANITE STATE CHALLENGE Semifinal Game

(DURHAM, April 22, 2017) – Most people can name the original 13 colonies, but do you know which state was the 14th?  Knowing that fact might have helped Merrimack High School in their quarterfinal GRANITE STATE CHALLENGE game against Bedford High school!  Both teams had already proved themselves with wins in the first round, Bedford had beaten a tough Salem team in the final seconds of the game and Merrimack pulled off a victory against an always competitive Academy for Science and Design team.  

At the end of a tight first round, Merrimack led by a score of 100 to 80, but Bedford played two more strong rounds and entered the final round with af 360-310 lead. In the final round, where a correct answer gives a team 20 points but an incorrect answer costs them 20, teams can quickly put points on the board, but they can also quickly lose a lead. Bedford played an aggressive final round and ended the game with a score of 540 to 430. Oh, that 14th state – it was Vermont!

The Bedford Bulldogs were represented by captain Jon Hill, Bailey Ellis, Josh Taranto, and Neelam Sandhu and alternates Jacob Nover and Luke Knedeisen. The Bulldogs were coached by Jon Cannon and Robby Zeller. The Merrimack Tomahawks were represented by captain Sean Sylvester, Pooja Agrawal, Nick Pittman, Scott Peyton, and alternates Alex Jobin and Lauren Hatfield . The Tomahawks were coached by Sara Campbell.

Watch this and all the matches online >>

Bedford now advances to the semifinal round of GRANITE STATE CHALLENGE where they will meet Fall Mountain Regional High, who defeated Portsmouth High to advance to the semifinals. Next Saturday, April 27, at 5:30 p.m. on NHPTV PRIME, 2016 GRANITE STATE CHALLENGE champion Nashua High South takes on 2015 champion Bishop Guertin High.

Hosted by Jim Jeannotte, the popular quiz contest began the season with 16 Granite State high school teams battling toward the coveted SUPERCHALLENGE title. Also, for a fifth year, there will be a Granite State vs. Bay State Governors Cup match between the winners of the GRANITE STATE SUPERCHALLENGE and the WGBH Boston High School Quiz Show.

New Hampshire's top high school academic teams demonstrate remarkable teamwork, quick thinking and smarts as they play GRANITE STATE CHALLENGE. The game emphasizes quick recall of math, science, social studies, language arts and fine arts facts—along with questions about current events, entertainment, sports, and New England.

Watch GRANITE STATE CHALLENGE Saturdays at 6 PM on NHPTV PRIME (5:30 p.m. during the NHPTV SPRING AUCTION), with multiple airdates on NHPTV PRIME and NHPTV EXPLORE. All games are available to watch online at video.nhptv.org. Online GSC quizzes keep students and audiences involved in the fun. www.nhptv.org/gsc

GRANITE STATE CHALLENGE is generously funded by lead sponsor Unitil, a provider of natural gas and electricity to customers in New England; additional funding is provided by NEA-New Hampshire, Heinemann Publishing, D.F. Richard Energy, Measured Progress, Pax World Donor Advised Fund of the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation, the NHHEAF Network Organizations, New Hampshire Magazine, and our Super Sunday partner, Manchester Community College.

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Carla Gordon Russell
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(603) 868-4339