Walnut Hills

From QBWiki
(Redirected from 2024 Walnut Hills)
Jump to navigation Jump to search
Walnut Hills High School
Whhs.png
Location:
Cincinnati, OH
Coaches Brian Meeron
State Championships 2009
National Championships None
National Appearances HSNCT: 2006-10, 2016-19, 2022, 2024-25
MSNCT: 2022, 2023
Program Status Active
School Size 1,933
NAQT Page link

Walnut Hills High School is a six-year college-preparatory public high school located in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1895, Walnut Hills High School continues to strive for academic excellence in all fields.

History (High School)

Pre-ECC

Pre-2005

The Illustrious Walnut Hills Quiz Team was founded around 1985. In the early 1990s, new history teacher Scott K. Grunder became coach, and would continue to serve as the Eagles' coach for almost 20 years. In their early years, Walnut played only events using the OAC format. This denied them the opportunity to compete at a national level.

Before 2012, Walnut competed in conference play in the Fort Ancient Valley Conference, whose quizbowl records were deleted upon the conference's dissolution. As a result, Walnut's regular-season results are limited.

2005-06

Walnut Hills finished as the OAC state runner-up to Fisher Catholic in 2006.

Walnut also attended their first NAQT event in 2005, coming in second place at the Tippecanoe Academic Challenge to DCC. This earned them a bid to the 2006 HSNCT, their first in school history. At the 2006 HSNCT, only one Walnut player scored above 10 PP20, that being junior Jacob Durst at 44.95, but they still ended up finishing 5-5 and a respectable 70th of 128.

2006-07

In April of 2007, Walnut won their first ever NAQT tournament, the First Annual Rowdy Raider Invitational, a tournament that Walnut would end up attending many iterations of over the years. Durst, back for his senior season, led the team to an 8-1 record and a berth at the 2007 HSNCT. At HSNCT, Durst led the team to a 7-3 record in the preliminaries, scoring 48.1 PP20. This earned them their first ever HSNCT playoff berth, where they won 3 of their first 4 playoff games before falling to Santa Monica 365-185. Their performance earned them 13th place in the tournament, which remains to this day the highest placement ever by a Walnut Hills team at HSNCT.

2007-08

Walnut won the FAVC Cardinal division title with a record of 9-1.

In November of 2007, Walnut attended the twelfth Tippecanoe Academic Challenge and won both the varsity and junior varsity divisions of the tournament. Leading the way for the varsity team were senior Lei Fan and junior Peter Komarek. The victory earned them a third straight HSNCT berth. At the 2008 HSNCT, Fan and Komarek alongside junior Jon Moller formed a strong core that would lead the Eagles to a 6-4 preliminary record and a second straight HSNCT playoff berth, although they would start in the losers' bracket due to HSNCT rules. Walnut won their first playoff game before losing to Dunbar A, which would finish them 42nd in the tournament.

2008-09

Walnut won the FAVC Cardinal division title with a record of 10-0.

Walnut Hills finished as the OAC state runner-up to Green High School in 2009.

In November of 2008, Walnut attended two tournaments in back-to-back weeks and win them both, with a combined 20-0 record across the two events. The team was led by Komarek and Moller, now seniors, as well as junior Max Bucher to form a strong three-way core. This core was enough to push Walnut over the top, as they soundly defeated Solon to win their first and only Ohio State Championship in school history. This set high expectations going into the 2009 HSNCT, with Bucher, Komarek and Moller all attending as well as sophomore Joe Nutter as backup. In the preliminaries, the team suffered a series of setbacks, most notably a 515-145 thrashing at the hands of eventual tournament runner-up Dorman, but still clinched a third straight HSNCT playoff berth with a 7-3 preliminary record, as well as the luxury of starting in the winner's bracket. In their first playoff game, the Eagles lost by just 10 points to New Trier, before earning their revenge on Santa Monica for their defeat two years prior. Their next match was against Detroit Country Day, who promptly mauled the Eagles to the tune of 505-170, ending their tournament run. They finished HSNCT in 17th place, the second-highest HSNCT placement in Walnut Hills history.

2009-10

Walnut won the FAVC Cardinal division title with a record of 10-0.

With the graduations of Komarek and Moller, the Eagles found a replacement for their hefty production in the form of Joe Nutter, now a junior. Senior Rachel Horn also provided decent production as the team's third. The Eagles took a step back in 2009, not winning as many tournaments but still placing highly in many of them. At the 2010 Ohio State Championship, Walnut looked to repeat as state champs, but only managed 4th despite a career-best day from Horn (44.44 PP20). The Eagles' 2010 HSNCT roster consisted of Nutter, Bucher, Horn and senior Camille Dejarnett. Nutter was the team's ace, lapping the rest of the team in powers and points per game (38.26). The Eagles went 6-4 in the prelims, earning them a fourth straight playoff berth but starting in the losers' bracket. In their second playoff game, Walnut suffered a tough loss to LASA B, in which Bucher and Nutter combined for 5 negs as the Eagles lost by 20. Walnut finished 27th in the tournament, the third highest HSNCT placement in school history.

2010-11

Walnut won the FAVC East division title with a record of 16-0.

With the rest of the 2010 HSNCT team graduated, Nutter, now a senior, would embark on the greatest individual season in Walnut Hills history. Nutter attended four tournaments in the 2010-11 season and recorded 104 total powers and 3,770 total points. At the 2011 Ohio State Championship, Nutter placed as the top individual player in the whole tournament with over 100 PP20 as Walnut ended in fourth place overall. Nutter then attended the 2011 HSNCT all by himself, under the team name Hamilton Scholars. Playing as a solo player, Nutter went 4-6 in the tournament, missing the playoffs and finishing in 141st place, while placing as the third-highest individual player in the tournament. Nutter remained as Walnut's all-time leader in points and powers for almost 15 years and remains the team's all-time leader in points per game to this day.

2011-12

Walnut won the FAVC East division title with a record of 13-1.

With Nutter graduating and joining Michigan State's quizbowl team, the Eagles would need to replace his production. They were able to do so with a well-rounded core consisting of senior Sarah Adams and juniors Stuart Johnson, Ashwin Kumar, and Will Schweller. The Eagles replicated their 2007 feat at the Tippecanoe Academic Challenge by winning both the varsity and junior varsity divisions. This earned them a bid to the 2012 HSNCT, but they did not end up attending, the first HSNCT without at least one Walnut player since Walnut started playing NAQT tournaments.

Joining the ECC

In 2012, Walnut Hills served as one of the founding members of the Eastern Cincinnati Conference, and began regular-season play using the OAC format beginning in the 2012-13 season. Games in the ECC are played in two-game sets on the same day, with both games counting separately towards a team's record. The ECC gives out yearly awards for Coach of the Year and Player of the Year, and its conference title goes to the team with the best regular-season record.

2012-13

In their first year in the ECC, Walnut swept aside all comers en route to a 14-0 record, although they did have narrow wins over Turpin and Loveland late in the season by just 3, 2, and 1 point. Coach Scott Grunder won the ECC's inaugural Coach of the Year award.

Despite their new conference, Walnut continued to play in NAQT tournaments. With much of their junior core from the prior year returning, Walnut almost won both divisions at Tippecanoe again, but lost to Solon in the final match by over 500 points, which placed them as the runner-up. For the second straight year, the Eagles earned a berth at HSNCT, but did not end up participating in the 2013 HSNCT.

2013-14

After splitting their first set of the year against Kings, Walnut won their next 12 games en route to a 13-1 record and a second straight conference title. Walnut did not win any conference awards for the 2013-14 season.

On the NAQT front, the graduation of the 2012 senior core took its toll on the Eagles, who failed to find adequate replacement for the production of Johnson, Kumar and Schweller. When they returned to Tippecanoe, the Eagles struggled to a 4-4 record and a measly 12th of 24 in the tournament. As a result, Walnut Hills failed to clinch an HSNCT berth for the first time since they started playing NAQT.

After the 2013-14 season, Scott Grunder retired as a teacher at Walnut Hills and subsequently as Walnut's head quizbowl coach.

2014-15

Walnut Hills' new coach was history teacher Paul Filio. In Filio's first season as head coach, Walnut won all 14 of their conference games en route to a 14-0 record and a third straight conference title. Filio was named Coach of the Year in just his first year on the job.

Walnut did not attend any NAQT tournaments in the 2014-15 season.

2015-16

Walnut won all 12 of their regular-season conference games (with their set against 0-12 Withrow being cancelled), leading to the Eagles' fourth straight conference title. Senior Nick Fixler won ECC Player of the Year for the 2015-16 season, the first Walnut player to win the award.

Walnut attended the first annual Mason Mashup Invitational in February 2016, and placed 3rd of 12 after losing their final game to Northmont. This helped them earn a wild-card berth at the 2016 HSNCT. Walnut attended HSNCT as a team for the first time since the 2009-10 season. The Eagles were led by Fixler as well as Julian Kurtzman, both senior captains. Fixler led the team in scoring with 48.28 PP20. After starting 5-2, the Eagles just needed one more win to clinch a playoff berth, but they were defeated handily in each of their last 3 games to fall to 5-5 and miss the playoffs.

After the 2015-16 season, Filio retired from teaching and subsequently as the Eagles' coach; he had been teaching at Walnut since 2000.

The Meeron Years

2016-17

In 2016, Brian Meeron, a math and statistics teacher, became the Eagles' new coach. Meeron had previously spent a decade as the head coach of Lakota West High School, winning two Coach of the Year awards in the Greater Miami Conference.

The Eagles lost 2 of their first 3 games in ECC play before rebounding to win 11 in a row, finishing 12-2 and splitting the conference title with Anderson. The losses were the Eagles' first in ECC play since the 2013-14 season. Sarah Hansen, the team's senior co-captain, was named co-ECC Player of the Year; the award was Walnut's second and the first by a player coached by Meeron.

Starting this season, the Ohio Academic Competition began recording history about regional and state tournaments, which crowned their own state champion each year. Walnut has played in the Southwest region of Ohio each year since their first recorded appearance in 2006. The top two finishers in each of Ohio's regional tournaments earn an automatic bid to the state tournament, with later editions also featuring wild-card teams to create a 16-team field.

At the Southwest Regional Tournament, Walnut entered as the 2 seed. They defeated 3-seed Little Miami and 4-seed Wyoming en route to winning the winner's bracket and securing an advantaged final rematch against Little Miami. Little Miami would stun Walnut by winning both games by just 3 points each, securing the inaugural Southwest Region Championship. At States, Walnut lost each of their first three games to Copley, Beavercreek, and Fisher Catholic, which caused them to miss the 4-team playoffs and finish in 8th overall.

Walnut qualified for the 2017 HSNCT after a second-place finish at the Miami Invitational, coming runner-up to Miami Valley. At the 2017 HSNCT, Walnut lost their final 3 games to finish 4-6 and place 234th in the tournament. Senior co-captain Cory Bargemann led the team in scoring at 24.61 PP20.

2017-18

In 2017, Walnut captured their sixth straight conference title and fifth outright title in the past six years, finishing 13-1, with their lone blemish a late-season loss to conference runner-up Loveland. Walnut swept the conference awards, with Meeron winning his first Coach of the Year award as senior captain Maren Bickel took home Player of the Year, marking the third straight year a Walnut player won the award.

For the second straight year, Walnut won the winner's bracket at the Southwest Regional Tournament, and for the second straight year, Little Miami won both games of the advantaged final to take the Southwest regional title. At the State tournament, Walnut avenged their regional loss to Little Miami with a 61-60 win in the opening round, but still lost 3 of their final 4 round-robin games, missing the 4-team playoff and finishing 9th of 12.

Walnut snuck into the 2018 HSNCT at the eleventh hour after coming second place in the Northmont Invitational in April, finishing as the runner-up to tournament host Northmont. This would mark the third straight year the Eagles made HSNCT. At the 2018 HSNCT, the Eagles improved upon the prior year's performance, finishing 5-5 and placing 213th out of 352. Junior William Culbertson led the team in scoring with 28.25 PP20.

2018-19

In 2018, Walnut lost their first game of the year to the Loveland Tigers, 71-70, before winning the rest of their games to finish 11-1 and capture a seventh straight conference title. Senior captain Nolan Brown would win ECC Player of the Year, which marked the fourth straight year the award went to a player from Walnut Hills.

Walnut entered the Southwest Regional as the 1 seed. After three convincing wins, they entered the winner's finals against Little Miami and lose 74-60. This dropped them to the loser's finals, where they lost a heartbreaker, 75-74, to Wyoming, which caused them to finish in 3rd. Nevertheless, Walnut earned a bid to the state tournament thanks to the new wild-card system, entering as the 10 seed. They won their first game, but then were pulverized, 100-47, by 2-seed Miami Valley. This knocked them down to the loser's bracket, where after beating Hoban and knocking out Little Miami 67-47 they ran into the same Miami Valley team and lost just as badly, 99-49, causing them to finish in 5th after a loss in pool play to Solon.

The Eagles started their 2018-19 NAQT circuit off with a bang, going 9-0 to win the Southwestern by Northeastern Tournament without having any seniors on their team, which earned them a bid to the 2019 HSNCT. Walnut finished 13th of 32 teams at the Ohio NAQT state championship, At the 2019 HSNCT, the Eagles still failed to crack a winning record and playoff berth, going 4-6 and placing 226th of 336. Walnut was without the services of Brown or William Culbertson, two seniors who had combined for 60 PP20 at States, but junior Noah Bigger managed to carry the load to the tune of 43.32 PP20, which stood as the high water mark for a Meeron-coached player for half a decade.

Starting this season, Meeron would begin assigning a slogan to each team season. The slogan for 2018-19 was "FOR THE CONQUEST OF THE STATE TITLE", though this slogan did not come to pass.

2019-20

In 2019, Walnut once again lost a game to the Loveland Tigers that would be their only loss of the year, finishing 11-1 to earn an outright conference title, their eighth straight. Meeron won his second Coach of the Year award for his excellence during the season. Due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, there would be no OAC postseason or state title awarded.

The Eagles failed to find the same success on the NAQT front. They attended three tournaments during the 2019-20 season, and failed to place highly in any of them. At the third, the Mason Mashup invitational, two losses in the prelims by a combined 20 points would keep the Eagles out of championship contention, despite Bigger and senior Miro Calderas placing second and ninth individually. As a result, the Eagles missed out on the HSNCT for the first time in four years.

The slogan for the 2019-20 season was "STATE FEARED, NATIONALLY RESPECTED".

2020-21

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Walnut Hills went fully remote for the entirety of the ECC regular season. This coincided with the addition of longtime rival Little Miami to the conference, who expected to immediately compete with Walnut for conference titles, as Panthers coach Ron Maupin said in his initial statement to the Panthers' newspaper. In the first meeting between the two schools, the Panthers backed up their words by sweeping Walnut in two games. It was the first series sweep suffered by Walnut since they began ECC conference play in 2012. The Panthers went on to finish the year 18-0 and snap Walnut's conference title streak, although Walnut did win all 14 of their other regular season games as well as the conference tournament. Meeron won his third Coach of the Year award for this season, although he had to share it with Maupin.

The Eagles hoped to reverse their fortunes in the Southwest Regional, entering as the 2 seed, but they lost twice more to Little Miami to finish as the tournament runner-up, earning them the 12 seed at OAC States. Walnut finished 7th at States, being trounced by Northmont and Hoban but defeating Aurora and Wyoming.

Due to COVID limitations making it tough to travel, Walnut only fielded a team at one tournament in the 2020-21 season, the 2021 NAQT Ohio State Championship. Walnut placed 9th of 20 at the tournament, and as a result missed HSNCT for the second straight year.

The slogan for the 2020-21 season was "THE YEAR OF THE CHAMPIONS".

2021-22

The 2021-22 season saw another big change to quizbowl in the ECC, with a shift in question writers replacing OAC's normal good quizbowl questions with bad ones, featuring speed-checks, quick comp-math during the lightning round, and many other fixtures of bad quizbowl. Entering a road match against Little Miami, both teams sat at 6-0; the two teams would play each other much tighter than the prior year, but ultimately the Panthers would win both games once again, one by walking it off on a question that essentially boiled down to "What does ICU stand for?" As a result, Little Miami would win the ECC title for the second straight year. For the first time in 8 years, Walnut didn't win any conference awards.

In the OAC postseason, Walnut entered as the 4 seed at the Southwest Regional, which they hosted, but an early loss to Mason saw them place just 6th. Nevertheless, their underlying stats granted them a wild-card bid to OAC States as the 9 seed, where they were trounced by powerhouse Solon in the second round, then edged out by Northmont in the loser's bracket to finish 9th.

On the NAQT circuit, Walnut fielded teams for just two tournaments during the 2021-22 season, but at the Fifteenth Annual Rowdy Raider Invitational, they would get 5th of 24 teams, earning them a bid to the 2022 HSNCT.

With only four players able to make the trip to HSNCT, and without the services of seniors Ben Liu and Nikhil Kothari, Walnut battled to a 4-3 record on the first day of the tournament, and split the first two on Day 2 to set up a win-and-in scenario against Dunbar B. Despite building a 225-55 lead three questions into the second half, Walnut saw their lead evaporate as Dunbar players Jason Zhang and Jonah Hubert claimed 6 of the game's final 7 tossups, ultimately knocking out Walnut in a massive comeback victory, 240-215. Senior Emory Domke led the Eagles in scoring with 31.47 PP20.

The slogan for the 2021-22 season was "THE RETURN OF EXCELLENCE".

2022-23

The Eagles' 2022-23 ECC campaign was marked by several upsets, owing to the nature of teams having adjusted to the new speed-check questions with it being their second year in use. Walnut suffered upsets at home to Turpin, Anderson, and Milford, along with several other close calls along the way. Nevertheless, the Eagles entered the final week of the season at 11-3, and with a two-game sweep of Little Miami featuring a dramatic come-from-behind win in Game 2, managed to steal a share of the conference title along with Little Miami and Anderson. Senior Graham Dunwoodie won ECC Player of the Year, buoyed by his performance in the Little Miami match, which was the fourth award won by a Meeron-coached player and the fifth by a Walnut player.

Walnut entered the OAC Southwest Regional as the 4 seed, where they were trounced by 1-seed Little Miami before being walked off by Indian Hill in the losers' bracket, causing them to place just 6th. Once again, the Eagles' underlying stats earned them a wild-card bid to States, where they entered as the 12 seed, lost to Little Miami again, and then were walked off by 13-seeded Troy to be part of the first group eliminated, placing 15th overall.

Walnut fielded teams at three NAQT tournaments in the 2022-23 season, but failed to place highly in any of them, owing to a stronger field at the 16th Rowdy Raider featuring Solon, Beavercreek, and Michigan powerhouse Detroit Catholic Central, fresh off their 2022 HSNCT championship, as well as Dunwoodie's unavailability for two of the tournaments. As a result, they failed to qualify for the 2023 HSNCT, their third miss in four years.

The slogan for the 2022-23 season was "THE YEAR OF DOMINATION".

2023-24

In ECC play, Walnut started the season 16-0, with their closest game being a double-overtime win over Anderson that was walked off by junior Miles Spieler. That set up another de facto conference title match against 15-1 Little Miami. Walnut won the first game of the match 71-68 and, although they lost the second game in blowout fashion, clinched their first outright ECC title since the 2019-20 season and eighth overall. On tournament day, thanks to the near-dissolution of the Southwest Ohio Conference, eight ECC JV teams were seeded into the bracket against the three remaining SWOC varsity teams, which allowed Walnut to accomplish the rare feat of winning two conference tournaments simultaneously, as they beat Little Miami in the finals of both tournaments. Walnut did not win any conference awards this season.

For the first time in a long while, Little Miami did not occupy the same bracket as Walnut at Regionals, having been moved to the Southeast region for balance's sake. Walnut entered as the 4 seed, and knocked off 1-seeded Anderson by one point to reach the winners' finals, but lost by double digits to Cincinnati Hills. They met the same fate in the losers' finals, as St. Xavier beat them to secure the region's second auto-bid, knocking Walnut down to third. However, an offseason change to the wild-card system worked in their favor; although they would not have made it in any prior year, their high placement helped them secure a wild-card berth and a 10-seed at States. Walnut was the only one of the four wild-card teams to win a game at the tournament, a 76-69 losers' bracket win over 15-seeded Defiance, but were then eliminated from the bracket after a 55-54 loss to 9-seeded Aurora, finishing ninth overall.

Walnut won their first tournament of the 2023-24 NAQT season, THE Buckeye Fall Novice Invitational, with sophomore Jackson Riddle scoring nearly 80 PP20 with 26 powers. However, due to field restrictions placed on the tournament, the Eagles did not qualify for the 2024 HSNCT with this win. On November 4, a 380-275 win over Little Miami propelled Walnut to a 5th-place finish at the 28th Tippecanoe Academic Challenge, securing their HSNCT berth. Riddle placed third individually in the tournament with 69.3 PP20.

Walnut sent seven players to the 2024 HSNCT, the most they had sent since 2010. After a tense first day of matches, they entered their seventh-round game with a 3-3 record, but lost to Grosse Pointe North 240-225 in a 28-tossup, double-overtime battle. They were eliminated from playoff contention on their second game of Day 2 after losing 175-145 to Aiken, finishing with a 5-5 record for the third time under Meeron. Riddle finished just outside the top 100 players individually with 43.89 PP20, setting a new record for a Meeron player at HSNCT, and earned one of the tournament's eight Sophomore Rising Star Awards.

The slogan for the 2023-24 season was "THE REIGN OF THE WAR EAGLES".

2024-25

Walnut went 15-3 in conference play, dropping one game to third-place Anderson and both to first-place Little Miami, all three losses coming by single digits. Walnut got their revenge on the Panthers in the ECC tournament with a come-from-behind 74-71 victory, preventing the latter from finishing with an undefeated season.

Walnut hosted the Southwest Regional in April 2025, and entered as the 5 seed. They were knocked out of the winner's bracket by 1-seed Little Miami in the semifinals, 89-64, before working their way past Indian Hill and Cincinnati Hills to reach the losers' finals against St. Xavier. Although the Bombers edged out Walnut to claim the region's second auto-bid, 74-66, Walnut was still easily able to claim a wild-card berth thanks to having one of the highest controllable scores in the entire state. Walnut entered States as the 6 seed, losing in the first round to Cincinnati Hills, beating Indian Hill and St. Xavier, then losing in blowout fashion to Solon in the third round of the losers' bracket, finishing seventh overall.

Walnut secured their spot in the 2025 HSNCT in their second NAQT tournament of the year, the first-ever St. Xavier Invitational on October 26, with a 7-1 record and a blowout win over Mason that secured them 3rd place in the tournament. Riddle again led the team with 53.33 PP20 and moved within 500 points of Joe Nutter's all-time NAQT points record, which he would surpass on November 2 at the Tippecanoe Academic Challenge as he led Walnut to another top-four finish against tough competition. Walnut placed tenth of 48 teams at the 2025 Ohio NAQT state championship, despite not having the services of Riddle. Junior Nikolai Fedorov enjoyed a career-best day at the tournament with 48.33 PP20.

At the 2025 HSNCT, Walnut's team of six reached a 4-3 record on day one, better than their previous year's run, but were doomed by rough starts in each of their first two games of Day 2 against University School A and Greenwood, being eliminated from playoff contention with a loss to the latter. They finished 5-5 for the fourth time under Meeron. Riddle led the team in scoring with 36.49 PP20.

The slogan for the 2024-25 season was "THE REIGN BECOMES A DYNASTY".

History (Middle School)

Meeron's tenure also saw Walnut's first foray into middle school tournaments. Many of Walnut's middle school players played in Brain Bowl, a trivia league for 4th through 6th graders run by Cincinnati Public Schools. Some Walnut high school players moderate matches for Brain Bowl.

2020-21

The 2020-21 season saw Walnut's middle school team travel to its first middle school tournament, the 2021 Ohio Middle School State Championship. Walnut placed 2nd of 16 in the tournament, with eighth grader Declan Mohler leading the team with 76.88 PP20. The success earned them a bid to the 2021 MSNCT, though they did not end up attending.

2021-22

The 2021-22 season saw Walnut's middle schoolers build upon the momentum that the previous year's state championship had given them. At their first tournament of the year, the Northmont Middle School Invitational, they managed to win with a 7-1 record, earning them a bid to the 2022 MSNCT. At the 2022 Ohio Middle School State Championship, Walnut was upset by Incarnation Catholic, causing them to place as the state runner-up for the second straight year. They attended the 2022 MSNCT, their first in school history, and placed 93rd of 140 with a record of 3-5. Leading the team in scoring was eighth grader Jackson Riddle with a mark of 38.82 PP20, the best by a Walnut player at any MSNCT.

2022-23

At Walnut's first tournament of the 2022-23 season, they sent two teams to the Miami Valley Middle School invitational, who ended up getting first and second and thus playing each other for the championship. In a hard-fought battle, the A team managed to win by just 5 points. Needless to say, this earned them a bid to the 2023 MSNCT. Walnut did not end up competing for the 2023 NAQT Ohio state title, as travel difficulties prevented the team from making the 3-and-a-half hour trip north to Copley, Ohio, to participate in the state tournament.

Walnut attended the 2023 MSNCT. Playing a big role in the Eagles' 2023 MSNCT run was the mystery of floor "V," a floor that was represented by a button on the elevator that was discovered during a chaotic game of Elevator Tag, but wasn't accessible. (It was found out much later that "V" refers to Ventana's, a former restaurant on top of the hotel that is now mostly unused but occasionally opened for specific events.) Without Meeron around, the Eagles spent several hours searching for floor "V". The team ended up finding a janitorial closet, thought to be "V" at first, but only created frustration when it was revealed to not be. Walnut won 3 of their first 4 games, and the hot start was credited to the blessing of floor "V". Unfortunately, Walnut was blown out by Redwood, an eventual top-8 finisher, in round 5, and the team would spiral into a 4-game losing streak to finish the tournament 3-5. The losing streak would foster a feeling of anger and betrayal towards the hidden floor, effectively cutting the hunt short. Since they finished 3-5, they were also unable to achieve a better record than Arab Junior High, whom team captain Cal Moore proclaimed rivals and "opps" on the day before the tournament began for reasons unbeknownst to most of the team. The team leaders in scoring at the 2023 MSNCT were eighth-graders Tiernan Hicks and Rishi Pampati, scoring 23.7 and 23.5 PP20 respectively.

2023-24

At Walnut's only middle school tournament of the season, the Miami Valley Kickoff, they would win their first seven games, setting up an advantaged final against Perry Middle School. Walnut lost the first game, but roared back and won the second game handily, winning them the tournament. In his first NAQT tournament, seventh-grader Dashiell Radkey-Drilling would lead the way with 71.04 PP20, the highest-scoring performance at an NAQT event by a Walnut seventh-grader (also known as an "effie".)

2024-25

The Walnut middle schoolers only participated in one tournament in 2025, a winter tournament at Miami Valley in February, which they won by going 8-0 and winning each of their games by triple digits. Both Radkey-Drilling and seventh-grader Susan Stewart-Pirone placed in the top four individuals at the tournament, averaging over 50 PP20 a piece, with Radkey-Drilling at a massive 76.43.

Roster (2024-25)

High School

  • Declan Mohler (12) (sr. co-captain)
  • Miles Spieler (12) (sr. co-captain)
  • Luke Jump (12)
  • Jackson Baur (12)
  • Jackson Riddle (11) (jr. captain)
  • Nikolai Fedorov (11)
  • Ana Smith (11)
  • Adithi Rao-Bedi (11)
  • Neil Shanbhag (11)
  • Tiernan Hicks (10)
  • Rishi Pampati (10)
  • Larry Hilton (10)
  • Shea Dillon (10)
  • Kenneth Wu (10)
  • Cal Moore (10)
  • Alex Flamme (9)
  • Hannah Goertemiller (9)
  • Maxwell Pipitone (9)

Middle School

  • Sasha Fedorov (8)
  • William Laurenson (8)
  • Deekshita Dirisinala (8)
  • Dashiell Radkey-Drilling (8)
  • Taleah Behanan (7)
  • Hunter Faris (7)
  • Lohitha Mittapalli (7)
  • Milah Shah (7)
  • Susan Stewart-Pirone (7)

Notable Alumni

Retrieved from "https://www.qbwiki.com/w/index.php?title=Walnut_Hills&oldid=67895"