April 6, 2004

Cowley AEC team first at regional tourney, earns spot in finals

Cowley County Community College’s Academic Excellence Challenge team has had an unbelievable season. With great leadership from returning sophomores, this year’s team has gone far.

The team’s first-place finish at the regional tournament last weekend gave it an automatic berth in the finals bracket. The championship will be held April 30 and May 1 at Allen County Community College in Iola.

“It was awesome to win,” sophomore team member Chris Craft said. “We did great, and at this rate, we have a good chance at winning state.”

Cowley went undefeated in the AEC preliminary tournament held March 6 at Butler County Community College. Cowley won the tournament by defeating Butler 205-60. 

Cowley then proceeded to the regional tournament at Hutchinson Community College and took first by having a higher average score per round. Cowley lost to Butler in the final round, giving each team one loss.

“It was great that we won, but it was good that we didn’t win every round because that keeps us looking at how we can improve to beat them next time,” sophomore team member Jenny Tevington said.

Other members of Cowley’s AEC team are Andrew McCown, Wichita Southeast sophomore, and Bary Tevington, Mayfield sophomore. Craft is from Caldwell, while Jenny Tevington is from Campus High School. Social Science Department Instructor Chris Mayer is head coach. He is assisted by Cowley AEC alumni Bethany Kennedy and Nick Endicott.

Cowley finished third at last year’s state tournament. The team was crowned AEC champions in 2000 and 2001.

AEC is an academic competition for two-year colleges in Kansas. It is the basic question-and-answer competition, very similar to the scholar’s bowl in high school.

Cowley’s AEC team practices every Thursday at 2:30 p.m. in room 135 of the Brown Center. The team invites all interested parties, including faculty and staff, to join it.

Any student interested in AEC for next year should contact Mayer. Scholarships are available.