GALWAY– The Galway varsity Masterminds team started a winning streak in December with two matches at Mayfield High School. On December 15, 2013, the Galway team competed against Gloversville and Amsterdam. The team, which consists of freshmen Rachel Reichard, Jack Noonan, Tim Webb-Horvath, Jacob Thompson, Brooke Martin, and sophomore Matt Zehl, defeated Amsterdam 235-130 and won against Gloversville 200-135. This brings their official record to 2-2. In January, the team will compete at Amsterdam against Broadalbin-Perth and Mayfield.

Masterminds is an academic quiz competition with questions involving science, math, history, literature, and pop culture. The way it works is that a game is split into two eight-minute halves. Four people play from each team at a time. A moderator will start to read a long “toss-up” question that starts off vaguely and gets more specific as the question goes on. If any person playing knows the answer to the question at any point during or after the question is read, they can buzz in and give what they believe is the answer. Toss-ups cannot be discussed by the teams; they must be answered individually. A correct toss-up question is worth ten points. If a person answers a toss-up correctly and quickly enough, they may get fifteen points for getting it earlier. An incorrect answer given before the question is finished leads to a five -point deduction for that team, while a correct answer gives the team a bonus question. Bonus questions are split into three parts, each worth ten points. They are shorter and more to the point than toss-ups. The team that receives the bonus question may discuss it among the four people currently playing for that team. Substitutions may be made between the eight-minute halves. After the second half, the team with the most points wins.

Earlier in November the Galway team competed against the Academy of Holy Names in a match filmed at Proctor’s Theater. The match will be aired on Time Warner Cable at a date to be announced later. Tune in to see how Galway did!