Los Alamos Middle School Science Bowl team members (left to right) Norah Whitton, Ilamuhil Sasikumar, Evan Cunningham, Bodie Holmes and Alex Hovey will be advancing to the National Finals as the New Mexico Regional Champions. Photo Courtesy LAPS
LAMS Team 2 members (left to right) Leia Lin, Eric Xu, Liam Colgan, Isaac Light and Julian Delorey garnered 3rd place in the New Mexico regional Science Bowl competition. Photo Courtesy LAPS
LAPS NEWS RELEASE
A team from Los Alamos Middle School was named the National Science Bowl 2026 Regional Champions after winning first place at the regional middle school competition held recently at Albuquerque Academy. LAMS 8th graders Bodie Holmes, Alex Hovey, Evan Cunningham, Ilamuhil Sasikumar and Norah Whitton will advance to the National Finals to be held in May.
Second place was awarded to Team 1 from Desert Ridge Middle School. LAMS Team 2,
including 7th graders Liam Colgan, Julian Delorey and Eric Xu, and 8th graders Isaac Light and Leia Lin, placed third in the competition.
For Coach Amy Bartlett-Gaunt, this will be the third time traveling with a Science Bowl team to Washington DC in four years.
“I am truly amazed how much these students learn on their own time,” she said. “Almost all of the studying they do for this competition is out of school hours and all by choice. The competition requires students to answer any possible science or math question verbalized to them and they have only five seconds to answer most questions. “
Thirteen teams and approximately 70 students from six schools across the state competed in the fast-paced, academic tournament focused on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).
The NSB brings together thousands of middle and high school students from across the country to compete in a fast-paced question-and-answer format where they solve technical problems and answer questions on a range of science disciplines including biology, chemistry, Earth and space sciences, physics, and math.
Launched in 1991, the National Science Bowl® is a competitive science education and academic event among teams of high school and middle school students who compete in a fast-paced verbal forum to solve technical problems and answer questions in all branches of science and math. Each team is composed of four students, one alternate student, and a coach.
The winning team from each qualifying regional competition will be eligible to compete in the National Finals held in Washington, D.C., from April 30 to May 4, with all expenses paid. The national event consists of several days of science activities and sightseeing, along with the competitions.
The top two middle and high school teams will win $5,000 for their schools’ math and science departments. Other schools placing in the top 16 in the National Finals will win $1,000 for their schools’ science departments. But to many, the ultimate prize is simply the prestige of winning the National Championship.