Post date: Jun 25, 2015 5:50:59 PM
A preview of the 2015 HSNCT, written by Eddie Kim, Jason Cheng, and Kion You of SoCal Quizbowl
Three of the four members of their 2014 HSNCT roster return, with Vincent Doehr and James Malouf heading the NAQT brigade as Erica Liu and Charlie Mann take out hits on fine arts and RMP. The team is proven to perform at harder tournaments, evidenced by their solid stats at MUT, a tournament usually significantly harder than HSNCT (as a team: 28 powers, 101 tossups, 14 negs, 17.91 PPB). The team does lack a dedicated literature player, instead relying on scattered individual knowledge. Close games will come down to how much of the NAQT flavor Vincent Doehr can gobble up.
Predictions:
Eddie: 8 – 2 in prelims, 2 – 2 in playoffs. La Jolla can pull off a clutch T-13 finish if the packets are in their favor, but it’s doubtful.
Kion: 7 – 3 in prelims, 3 – 2 in playoffs. La Jolla has been the closest team in SoCal to defeating Arcadia A, so I have no doubts that they can push for a deep playoff run. Their weaknesses and holes are eclipsed by their lengthy experience with more difficult tournaments, and their new scoring weapons in James and Charlie should provide them the boost into national recognition.
Jason: 7 – 3 in prelims, 3 – 2 in playoffs. May be victims of harsh scheduling as so many SoCal teams at their level before them. Definite top 20 potential, with a dark horse chance of beating some top 10 teams.
Full predictions and analysis for all teams can be found here