Radnor High School recently earned a trip to the 71st Delco Hi-Q Championship with a semifinal win over host Penncrest and Haverford, the two-time defending champion.

It was a close contest from start to finish with teams often separated by only one point. Haverford moved ahead late in the first half with 20 points, compared to Radnor’s 16 and Penncrest’s 13. The defending champion’s lead slipped later in the contest when it missed the World History question.

That left Penncrest with 30 and Radnor with 31 points at the conclusion. Penncrest and Radnor appealed a question with Penncrest hoping to gain enough points to overtake its competitor. In the end, the home team lost the appeal and Radnor gained four extra points on its challenge.

Final Score: Radnor 35, Penncrest 28, Haverford 27.

Host Garnet Valley held the lead throughout its thrilling, weather-delayed semifinal. It came into the round holding second place in the regular season against sixth-place Marple Newtown and seventh-place Strath Haven. The home team had a seven-point lead at the half but started to see it dwindle after intermission. Marple Newtown caught up and tied the contest with only two categories left.

It was 45-45 when Marple gained a bonus point on Strath Haven’s missed question to take a one-point lead with one four-point question left. Marple quickly buzzed in first on the Math toss-up but missed. Strath Haven followed but was also incorrect. Garnet Valley was left with 52 seconds to successfully answer the Math question to gain four points and a trip to the championship.

Final Score: Garnet Valley 49, Marple Newtown 46, Strath Haven 31.

Radnor and Garnet Valley will travel to Delco Christian in Newtown Square to compete for cash prizes, donated by Franklin Mint Federal Credit Union, and the Donna Zerby Trophy in the 71st Championship contest. The team that takes the title will then move onto the national Hi-Q championship on April 5, when they will compete against three regional Hi-Q champs from other states via video conference.

Delco Christian joined the competition in 1993, replacing St. James High School, and is making its second consecutive and fifth overall appearance in the championship. The school won third place in 1995, 2006, 2012, and 2018. Delco Christian placed first in the regular season, which earned it the opportunity to host the championship. Thom Houghton is a 20-year faculty advisor.

Radnor possesses one of the most distinguished records in Delco Hi-Q history. This will be its 27th overall appearance in the championship. Radnor has earned 11 titles since 1965, with the last coming in 1998. Faculty advisor Robert Spear has coached the team for seven years.

Garnet Valley also has a long history of successful Delco Hi-Q seasons. The school has earned four titles since 2011, for a total of eight since its first win in 1978, and placed second last season. This is the school’s sixth consecutive championship appearance and 24th overall since 1977. Faculty advisor Lesley Arensberg has been coaching the team for 13 years and fellow advisor Sandra Dubnansky is in her eighth year.

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