The Presbyterian Boys’ Senior High School (PRESEC, Legon) have won their 8th National Science and Maths Quiz (NSMQ) at the 30 th edition of the tournament.
They have extended their dominance by having their second back to back victory since the competition began in 1993 which was won by Prempeh College, the second most successful school to win the prize with five laurels.
The 2023 grand finale which which had Opoku Ware School (OWASS), PRESEC Legon and Achimota School was keenly contested considering the drama, tension and undulating nature of the scores despite PRESEC leading from the onset till the final question.
At the end of the Round 2 which is the ‘Speed Race’, PRESEC Legon was leading with 24 points followed by OWASS with 14 points with Achimota School trailing them with 12 points.
During the Round 3 which involves the ‘Problem of the Day’ with a perfect score of 10 points, students of the Achimota School back on their campus believed the contest was not just about brains but also required spiritual intervention.
The students in their Assembly Hall held their hands and led by some of their teachers prayed and asked God to intervene to change their fortunes for the better.
Despite OWASS, Achimota and PRESEC obtaining 2, 3 and 4 marks respectively from the Problem of the Day, the True or False session which is the Round 4 elevated Achimota School from the bottom to 28 points, trailing PRESEC by just 3 points, leading OWASS by 8 points.
The contest was to be decided by the final round which was the riddles.
OWASS attempted the first riddle and got it wrong, same as Achimota, leaving PRESEC to exhaust all the clues and got it right by adding 3 points to their tally.
Achimota School attempted the second riddle on the second clue and got it wrong leaving PRESEC to get it on the fourth clue with 3 additional points.
Achimota School once again attempted the third riddle on the second clue and got it wrong, with OWASS solving it on the third clue for 3 points.
PRESEC came back for 3 points in the final riddle after both Achimota and OWASS attempted along the way and got it wrong, bringing PRESEC’s final score to 40, Achimota running up with 28 points and Opoku Ware School placing third with 23 points.
Achimota prayed, there appeared to be some miracle which worked in their favour along the way, but ended up losing grip of the rope during the final round of the competition.
