Morgantown bests Bluefield for second straight year, to three-peat as Academic Showdown champions

By Matthew Young, RealWV

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A final round rematch from 2024 yielded the same result in 2025, as Morgantown High School defeated Bluefield on Thursday, to claim the schools’ third consecutive Academic Showdown Grand Championship. Correctly naming American writer Toni Morrison as the author of the novel “Beloved” set the final score at 26-10 in favor of the Mohigans.

***Morgantown Team 2*** ***won their third-consecutive Grand Championship at the 2025 Academic Showdown. The final round of competition was held April 30, at the Culture Center in Charleston.***

“The thing I immediately thought on that final point was ‘we did it,’” Morgantown Team 2 Captain Julianna Ferrell said. “We wanted to have fun, but also wanted to be competitive. We are ecstatic that we have won three years in a row. We have so many wonderful teachers that have prepared us for this event, and we are thankful for them. Through practice, we have developed so many inside jokes and have shared in each other’s interests.”

The win earned Morgantown’s Team 2 a $1,000 grant, with each member receiving a new Dell Chromebook. For their second place finish, Bluefield High School has earned an $800 grant, with all members receiving a pair of noise-cancelling headphones.

“Appearing in the finale is a culmination of years of hard work,” Bluefield High School Team Captain Quinn Brown said. “There were moments where we thought we would be eliminated, but we forged on and placed second. I think it’s incredible that a school as small as ours has displayed such camaraderie and talent in making it this far.”

***Bluefield High School finished in 2nd Place in the 2025 Academic Showdown Grand Finale. The final round of competition was held April 30, at the Culture Center in Charleston.***

Morgantown High School has emerged as something of a dynasty in the Academic Showdown competition. In addition to claiming three out of the four possible state titles since the competition began, Morgantown swept their regional contest at West Virginia University last February, with both of the school’s teams qualifying for the Grand Finale in Charleston. George Washington High School claimed the inaugural championship in 2022.

Including Morgantown and Bluefield, a total of 14 teams competed in Thursday’s state finals, which was held at the Culture Center in Charleston. The top two finishers from each of the seven regional competitions qualified for the event.

Additional qualifying teams included Huntington, Nitro, Winfield, Braxton County, Westside, Sherman, Greenbrier East, Bridgeport, Grafton, Spring Mills, and Berkeley Springs High Schools. The 3rd through 14th place finishing teams each received a $300 grant.

Watch the 2025 Academic Showdown state finals on WV Public Broadcasting’s YouTube channel.

“We are thrilled with the response from our students and educators,” State Superintendent of Schools Michele L. Blatt said. “They have shown a real commitment to the Academic Showdown, spending a significant part of their year preparing to compete. It goes to show that learning can look differently and still be effective. In addition, the festive atmosphere, the students who come to cheer on their teams, the band and the cheerleaders all make this a memorable and exciting event for everyone involved.”

The Academic Showdown is made possible through a partnership between the West Virginia Departments’ of Education and Arts, Culture & History, the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission, and West Virginia Public Broadcasting.