Narragansett, R.I. -- May 7, 2001 -- It
was a picture-perfect day for sailing when
the top five teams from the
National
Ocean Sciences Bowl regional
competition, dubbed the Quahog Bowl,
recently got together for an afternoon
trip aboard the Continental Sloop
Providence. The trip, donated by the
Providence Maritime Heritage Foundation
which operates the Sloop Providence, was
just one of the prizes connected with the
academically challenging and prestigious
competition for high school students.
On board were the winners of the Quahog
Bowl from Cranston West High School who
also placed a very respectable third at
the national tournament in Miami in April.
Joining them were another team from
Cranston West, who came in second in the
regional competition, the third-place team
from West Warwick High School, the
fourth-place team from Miss Porter’s
School in Farmington, Connecticut, and the
fifth-place team from Narragansett High
School.
Before boarding the Sloop Providence, the
Cranston West teams spent the morning
touring Sonalysts, the Waterford,
Connecticut-based multimedia production
facility. Locally, they will also tour the
Naval Undersea Warfare Center in Newport
and spend an afternoon aboard the URI
coastal research vessel Cap’n
Bert.
This August, the winning Cranston West
team will visit Catalina Island off the
coast of southern California, the
team’s prize for placing third in the
national competition. Unlike the summer
tourists, the students will stay on the
University of Southern California’s
Wrigley Institute campus where they will
kayak in and around the coves and natural
caves lining the coast, snorkel with
adolescent tiger sharks near the research
facility docking area, and assist
researchers by tagging fish.
The five students who traveled to Miami
to represent Rhode Island in the national
finals were team captain Joe Allen,
Michael Neirinckx, Rick Shideler, Nicole
Stockley, and Emily Shumchenia. All are
seniors, except Stockley, a sophomore.
They were accompanied by their teacher
coach Steven Krous.
During the trip aboard the Sloop
Providence, the Cranston West team spoke
enthusiastically about the national
competition in Miami.
"The competition was intense," said
team captain Allen. "The entire process
was a huge commitment, but with the huge
commitment comes huge rewards. We’ve
gotten very close as a result of the
National Ocean Sciences Bowl. In fact, we
still meet once a week as a group."
Allen, who will be going to URI in
September as an ocean engineering student,
explained that since last September until
the competition in April, the group met to
practice after school for two hours, three
days a week.
Neirinckx, who will be attending
Worcester Polytechnic Institute in the
fall to major in computer science, said he
loved Miami. "We went to the beach and we
had a lot of fun, but the competition was
the best.
The other senior members of the team
will also be heading to college in the
fall. Emily Shumchenia will be attending
URI as a pharmacy major and Rich Shideler
will major in biology at Providence
College.
They all gave high marks to their coach
Steve Krous who attended their practices
and went with them to the national
competition in Miami.
Organized by the URI
Office
of Marine Programs, the 2001 Quahog
Bowl was hosted by the URI Graduate School
of Oceanography (GSO) in collaboration
with Mystic Aquarium, a major sponsor.
Patterned after the National Science
Bowl, the National Ocean Sciences Bowl was
inaugurated in 1998 to provide a forum for
students who excel in math and science to
receive national recognition for their
diligence and talent while broadening
their awareness and understanding of the
oceans. Federal sponsors of the National
Ocean Sciences Bowl include the National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration,
the Office of Naval Research, the
Oceanographer of the Navy, the National
Science Foundation, the U.S. Geological
Survey, NASA, Anteon Corporation, the
National Sea Grant College Program, and
the Center for Marine Conservation.
Contact: Lisa Cugini, (401) 874-6642,
lcugini@gso.uri.edu
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