UNF Kinesiology Team wins second at SEACSM quiz bowl
The University of North Florida’s Kinesiology student team won second place at the 52nd annual Southeastern American College of Sports Medicine (SEACSM) Conference Student Bowl in Greenville, South Carolina.
Having won the Jeopardy-style quiz bowl last year, the UNF team was given less than four days to assemble an official team and prepare for the event after being put on a waitlist.
The team consisting of UNF students Rohith Kilambi, Grayson Keasler, Adella Barrineau and captain Reese Howard were thrust into the competition against 31 other universities in topics revolving around important subtopics of sports medicine such as epidemiology, strength and conditioning, physical therapy and athletic training.
Stressed and often second guessing themselves, the UNF Kinesiology team were given a time limit to answer questions within 15 seconds, completely unaware of the opportunity to pass on answers they did not know without the risk of losing points. A fact that resulted in the team ranking dead last with a negative score in single jeopardy.
After the students were clarified on the rules, they began to bring their score back to the positive side, ranking 21st after scoring perfectly in the cardiovascular physiology and strength and conditioning categories in double jeopardy.
Going into final jeopardy, the UNF student team decided to bet all their points in hopes of landing in the top 10. With bated breath, the students waited to see if they had correctly answered the all-or-nothing question regarding muscle physiology.
“We couldn’t believe our eyes when we saw that we had shot up to second place,” said Howard. “We were stunned, we had just made the largest comeback in UNF quiz bowl history."
The team will represent UNF and the SEACSM at the national American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) competition if the first-place team is unable to attend.
The SEACSM Conference also held various research presentations and lectures held by undergraduates and professionals in the field. One of those presentations was delivered by Howard, also won second place for her undergraduate research examining inertial loads and acceleration during the preseason and competitive season in collegiate soccer players.