March 1, 2004

Rose-Hulman Team Comes up with Right Answers at Regional College Bowl

A team consisting of Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology students from mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, computer science, applied biology and economics showcased their vast knowledge of technical information, current events and trivia by winning the regional College Bowl competition on Feb. 21 in Indianapolis.

National College Bowl Bound: Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology's College Bowl team which won the regional tournament includes (front row, left to right) Brandon Hathaway, Kristy Bailey and Charles Key. In the back row are John Beety (left) and Justin Droba (right). The team will compete in the National College Bowl Tournament on April 23-25 at Auburn University.

Kristy Bailey, a junior mechanical engineering major from LaGrange, Ind., is the team's captain. Other members are John Beety, a sophomore economics major from Logansport, Ind.; Justin Droba, a sophomore mathematics major from Dearborn Heights, Mich.; Brandon Hathaway, a junior mechanical engineering major from New Smyrna Beach, Fla.; and Charles Key, a sophomore electrical engineering major from Harrison, Ohio. John Robson, institute librarian, is the team's adviser.

Bailey's strengths are biology and science; Beety is keen on politics and current events; Droba's specialty is art and literature; Hathaway is the person for history; and Key's topics are sports and entertainment.

Those attributes came in handy as the team defeated Valparaiso University, 200-95, in the regional championship match. Other colleges with a team in the tournament were the University of Notre Dame, Indiana University, Purdue University, Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville, Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis, Wabash College and Joliet Junior College.

Rose-Hulman joins Baylor University and SUNY-Stony Brook as first-time qualifiers to the National College Bowl Tournament, being conducted on April 23-25 at Auburn University. All 15 regional champions will be squared off against each other in the round robin-style tournament. Other qualifiers include the University of Chicago, the defending national champions; the University of Florida, Dartmouth College, Cornell University, Georgetown University, University of Michigan, Colorado State University, University of Washington, UCLA, Davidson College, University of Minnesota and Truman State University.

The College Bowl tournaments challenge players in current events, history, math, geography, sports and literature, Johnson said. The Bowls began in the 1950s on television, sponsored by General Electric. The contest is now sponsored by the Association of College Unions International.