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NSMQ 2023: The Tie Breaker - St. James Seminary Knocks out Our Lady of Mt. Carmel

KNUST Auditorium, October 12, 2023.

Meet the team that broke the tie - St. James


The second day of the One-eighth Stage competitions at the KNUST Auditorium was filled with excitement. Competing for a spot in the Quarter-final Stage were Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Girls SHS, St. Thomas Aquinas, and St. James Seminary SHS. Each of these three schools displayed exceptional academic prowess. However, in the end, St. James emerged as the victor, breaking the tie and leading to an early exit for Our Lady of Mt. Carmel and St. Thomas Aquinas SHS.


The 30th Anniversary edition of the National Science & Maths Quiz kicked off, on October 6th, 2023. As an exciting highlight of the 30th Anniversary celebrations, this year's NSMQ is being hosted in two distinct regions: KNUST in Kumasi and National Theatre in Accra. This historic occurrence represents the first time the National Championship spans across two regions. KNUST serves as the venue for the Preliminary four stages of the competition, with the Grand Finale scheduled at the National Theatre.


Our Lady of Mt. Carmel fearless of the boys


Nailing the first and second questions, all the schools demonstrated exceptional performance in academics. St. James gained a bonus point when the Ladies missed their question, and vice versa. As things stood, all the schools were doing well on the scorecard.

However, during the second round, Our Lady of Mt. Carmel lost a point on a question, and Aquinas' attempt didn't end well for the boys. In an interesting twist, the ladies scored a bonus point on a question that Aquinas had lost. It became evident that this round was highly competitive, with St. James potentially losing some points to the Ladies.


The boys displayed their academic prowess and emerged as winners of round one, accumulating 20 points. The Ladies performed admirably and outperformed St. Thomas Aquinas by 4 points, securing a total of 16 points. Unfortunately, Aquinas managed only 12 points, ending up at the bottom of the scoreboard.


Starting the Speed Race, all schools scored zero points for the first question. However, St. James managed to recover from this setback, answering two questions correctly and adding those points to their score. The other schools quickly followed suit, eagerly and accurately responding to the questions directed at them. As this round came to a close, the previous champions of round 1 emerged victorious with a total of 22 points, while St. Thomas Aquinas fell short with 15 points. Once again, the ladies secured the second position with a total of 17 points.


The day's question was a problem for Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Girls' SHS


For all the schools, today's Problem of the Day proved to be quite challenging, as reflected in the scores at the end of this round. Our Lady of Mt. Carmel found themselves at the bottom of the chart with a score of only 4 out of 10. Among the boys, there was a tie, with both St. James and St. Thomas Aquinas achieving a score of 6 out of 10.


St. James Seminary showcased their superiority in the True/False section, sending a strong message to Aquinas, by securing a commanding lead of 44 points. In the meantime, Our Lady of Mt. Carmel performed admirably, closely trailing St. James with an impressive 37 points. St. Thomas Aquinas lagged behind in points, with a score of 31 points.


44 points and extra 3 points gives St. James a comfortable Quarterfinals seat.


In a remarkable twist during the riddles section on the second clue, Our Lady of Mt. Carmel closed the gap they had with St. James Seminary, a rivalry that had been ongoing since the days of round 1. Both schools found themselves at 44 points, resulting in a tie that required resolution by the Quiz Mistress.


After several attempts by the Quiz Mistress to break the tie, the competition grew even more intense. Ultimately, St. James pulled ahead, using their academic prowess to solve the next presented riddle, earning them an extra 3 points over Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Girls' SHS. Kudos to the ladies for giving the men a tough competition.

Unfortunately, St. Thomas Aquinas was eliminated from the contest, finishing with 31 points at the end.


Here are the Round-by-Round Scores


Round One General Questions (Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, Biology)


Our Lady of Mt. Carmel 16


St. Thomas Acquinas 12

St. James Seminary 20


Round Two (Pepsodent Speed Race)


Our Lady of Mt. Carmel 17


St. Thomas Acquinas 15

St. James Seminary 22



Round Three (Problem of the Day)


Our Lady of Mt. Carmel +4 21


St. Thomas Acquinas +6 21

St. James Seminary +6 28



Round Four (True/False)


Our Lady of Mt. Carmel 37


St. Thomas Acquinas 31

St. James Seminary 44



Round Five (Riddle)


Our Lady of Mt. Carmel 44


St. Thomas Acquinas 31

St. James Seminary 44


The 30th Anniversary Edition of the NSMQ is proudly brought to you by the Ghana Education Service in partnership with GOIL and supported by JoyNews, AT, Prudential Life Insurance Ghana, Pepsodent Toothpaste, Beta Malt, GARNET, Coronation Insurance, Academic City University College, Accra College of Medicine, Cowbell, Bel Beverages, GTP, Newmont Ghana, Africa World Airlines, and YFM. This is a Primetime production!


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