RESULTS: Berry College Tourney (1-27-07) Rome, GA

[Gunnells]

Congratulations to Central Gwinnett, a much deserved 10-0 champion of this round robin event in north Georgia.

Central has been one of top teams this season in Georgia, but they've flown under the radar due to a some tough playoff losses.

They were clearly the class of the field today at Berry College, and their efforts earned the Black Knights their first tourney title on the year.

Top four:

1. Central Gwinnett
2. Norcross
3. Walton
4. Lakeside


Full results (including round by round)

[jburnsOHS]

Congrats to Central Gwinnett which I am sure is a good team, but just to keep things in perspective, the Berry College Tournament is essentially a closed and unadvertised tournament, allowing only the usual small number of suspects in the field each year.

[jrbarry]

There was a day whern Berry was the biggest tournament in Georgia...back in the mid-1980s. It featured 26 teams in a round robin format lasting from 2pm on Friday until about 8pm on Saturday. Bigtime marathon event.

I gave up on it in 1991 I think.

Central Gwinnett is a very good team, one of the best in Georgia. C Hirsch knows what she is doing. Gwinnett County quiz bowl is as it has always been full of talent and good teams.

[Gunnells]

Congrats to Central Gwinnett which I am sure is a good team, but just to keep things in perspective, the Berry College Tournament is essentially a closed and unadvertised tournament, allowing only the usual small number of suspects in the field each year.

While it is a small and uneven field, there were enough quality teams that Grayson finished 5th at Berry on the heels of their 2nd place showing at Savannah Country Day.

[quizbowllee]

I know I'm gonna get shot down here, but we at Brindlee Mountain would really like to come to a tournament at Berry some day. I know that when I played in Jr. College, the Berry Tournaments were my favorite. I'd like my high school team to have the opportunity to see the campus and play at your tournament.

[NotBhan]

Based on the stats ... were those 15-tossup rounds?

Also, I second Lee's comments about the Berry campus. I loved going to Berry's junior-college tournaments for the same reason.

--RD

[quizbowllee]

Based on the stats ... were those 15-tossup rounds?

Also, I second Lee's comments about the Berry campus. I loved going to Berry's junior-college tournaments for the same reason.

--RD

The "tossups heard" stats indicated "15" on each round.

[centralhs]

We have participated in the Berry tournament for the past two years. I can't speak for how it was before 2006, but the tournament these last two years has been run in a very professional fashion and it uses challenging questions, on par with typical NAQT questions.

Yes, the tournament (for whatever reason) chooses not to advertise... however, it is not a "closed" tournament. Any team who hears about it is welcome to participate. Due to its one-day, round robin format, the playing field is intentionally kept to a small size. This year there were a few less teams participating than last year because a couple of teams pulled out at the last minute. I, personally, always like a larger field because it means that you get to play more rounds.

For any team that has not been to the Berry tournament in the past, or at least not in the last few years, I would actually highly recommend it. It's not really different from the average tournament except for its small size. What it has going for it that most high school tournaments don't have is an extremely warm, relaxed atmosphere... and of course the attractive Berry campus.

[jburnsOHS]

I can only go by my experience. In 15 years of quiz bowl coaching, 8 in metro Atlanta, I have never received notice or an invitation to participate. And my efforts as a coach seeking information about my team participating and as State Tournament Director seeking information about when the tournament was to be held have been either ignored or rebuffed in the past.

[drollins]

[quote="jburnsOHS"]Congrats to Central Gwinnett which I am sure is a good team, but just to keep things in perspective, the Berry College Tournament is essentially a closed and unadvertised tournament, allowing only the usual small number of suspects in the field each year.[/quote]

It's not that the tournament is unadvertised; it's just advertised in the wrong place(s). Dr. Carpenter relies on the Student Activites staff to advertise the tournament, instead of doing so personally or having the team do it. That's a huge mistake. The staff usually does excellent work, but they haven't done enough to promote the tournament. That ends now. I'll post the announcement(s) myself, if need be.

The Berry tournament is not closed to any team in GA. Lack of advertising and the price have caused the field to shrink to a list of "usual suspects." I would LOVE to open the field to teams from other states. I've been pushing the idea for years, and I would love to have in state programs like Brookwood, Parkview, etc. come every year. The fear is that the field will be too large. Since Berry uses the tournament to promote it's College Bowl Scholarship Program (among many other Scholarship Programs), that's a problem I would love to have. More HS players who compete equals more future Berry Students and/or players.

Please let me know what other ideas or suggestions you folks have, and I'll pass them along. If this program does have one solid thing, it has a faithful and active alumni base. I will see to it that all ideas are passed on.

- Dren

[quizbowllee]

Congrats to Central Gwinnett which I am sure is a good team, but just to keep things in perspective, the Berry College Tournament is essentially a closed and unadvertised tournament, allowing only the usual small number of suspects in the field each year.

It's not that the tournament is unadvertised; it's just advertised in the wrong place(s). Dr. Carpenter relies on the Student Activites staff to advertise the tournament, instead of doing so personally or having the team do it. That's a huge mistake. The staff usually does excellent work, but they haven't done enough to promote the tournament. That ends now. I'll post the announcement(s) myself, if need be.

The Berry tournament is not closed to any team in GA. Lack of advertising and the price have caused the field to shrink to a list of "usual suspects." I would LOVE to open the field to teams from other states. I've been pushing the idea for years, and I would love to have in state programs like Brookwood, Parkview, etc. come every year. The fear is that the field will be too large. Since Berry uses the tournament to promote it's College Bowl Scholarship Program (among many other Scholarship Programs), that's a problem I would love to have. More HS players who compete equals more future Berry Students and/or players.

Please let me know what other ideas or suggestions you folks have, and I'll pass them along. If this program does have one solid thing, it has a faithful and active alumni base. I will see to it that all ideas are passed on.

- Dren

I can tell you without a shadow of a doubt that some of my players from Brindlee Mountain (which is in Alabama), would be EXTREMELY interested in receiving a scholarship to Berry.