BHS Science Bowl Team Attains Major Achievement

Left to right (BHS Team 1): Tara Saini, Dhruv Saini, James Huang, Arseni Dzeravianka and Andrew Fu. Standing in front of Congress in DC whilst an excavator tears down establishments, like the state of the country. Photo by Vadzim Dzeravianka.

For the first time ever, the Bellevue High School Science Bowl team advanced to finals, obtaining a fully paid trip to Washington DC at the end of April. Each year, roughly 1500 high school teams around the United States compete in the National Science Bowl tournament sponsored by the Department of Energy. But only the top 64 teams are able to compete in finals, meaning that if using this as a measure of academic rigor, our school is one of the best in the country.

The lineup for the finalist team, also called BHS Team 1, are juniors Dhruv Saini, his sister Tara Saini, Arseni Dzeravianka, Andrew Fu and alternate James Huang. Each contestant specializes in a combination of topics which include biology, chemistry, Earth and space, physics, energy and astronomy.

“We got the hang of the format and were able to anticipate the types of questions, so we answered faster,” Tara Saini says, explaining why they improved their record drastically.

To reach finals, they first must win the online regionals tournament, beating 19 other teams, including the school Baton Rouge, which qualified for finals in 2024. This is extremely impressive, as Baton Rouge Team 1 defeated the other BHS team (which included me) with a score of 134-20. But with consistent practice with well-timed luck, they were able to pull through.

“There was one time we didn’t know a question about who what the blue LED is made of,” Dzeravianka says. “But Andrew watched a reel and answered it.”

Maybe the lesson to take away is that one can educate themselves by doing anything, even scrolling. Unfortunately, finals were much, much harder. They had to compete against teams like BASIS and Lakeside, the second strongest STEM school in Washington. Thus, the team was unable to win any of the eight round robin games and did not advance to the elimination bracket. In their practices and through the tournament experience, even they expressed disbelief at how competitive the winning teams were.

“We would hear a question involving physics terms we have never heard about, and teams would buzz before hearing the entire question,” Fu says. “the responses were so fast that the auditorium erupted in cheering.”

Nevertheless, the trip to DC was a lot of fun. The teams took several

The Air and Space Museum must have been a blast for Fu, the president of BHS aerospace club. Photo by Tara Saini.

days initially touring landmarks like the air and space museum. Hungry after the flight there, our competitors were surprised by a large buffet for dinner. They also stayed at the same residence, the National Conference Center, where each person received their own room. Clearly, the treatment when funded by the federal government is excellent. Though, the layout of the place, with dozens of winding hallways, could use some improvements.

“We always get lost and keep finding different versions of the same place with slight differences so we can never tell where we are, like the backrooms,” Dhruv Saini said.

BHS Team 1 plans to compete again next year, hoping to achieve even better results. Their story tells us that trying again should not discourage you, and improbable results can be achieved with practice. So, if you want to challenge them, ask to join them or seek out BHS Team 2. No matter where you are right now, you could be the one to finish what they started. Bellevue High might have a chance on the national stage after all.