Students from Bedford High School who are competing in this year’s Granite State Challenge. Courtesy photo

DURHAM — The Bedford High School Bulldogs narrowly escaped the Souhegan High School Sabers, by a score of 325 to 320, in the latest Granite State Challenge matchup.

The Bulldogs are led by captain Matthew Ruggiero, a sophomore. Ruggiero re-formed the team last year with teammate Alina Chausovsky, a junior. The team is rounded out by freshman Sam Dooley and sophomore Sumedh Godavarthy. Team alternates are juniors Tabitha Arp and Samantha Arp, along with sophomore Victoria von Wallenstein. The Bulldogs are coached by Kelly Chausovsky, Bedford’s Destination Imagination coordinator, and parent Sherry Arp.

Souhegan is captained by junior Rhys Macdonald and includes senior Sam Hogan, junior Gideon Allen and sophomore Harrison Towne. Team alternates are senior Roman Block as well as juniors Aaron Coleman and Alex Grayson. The Sabers are coached by American Studies teacher Nicholas Drinkwater.

During the match, Bedford led by 85 points at the end of the first round, but Souhegan managed to close the gap considerably after strong showings during the three strikes round and the 60-second round, setting the teams up for an intense final round with the outcome undecided until the final seconds of the game.

Despite Souhegan’s loss, Macdonald was proud of his team’s performance.

“I think we did really well,” he said. “It just came down to the buzzer. There were a couple of questions that we could have gotten if we buzzed in faster, but Bedford’s a great team.”

Drinkwater shared similar sentiments.

“That’s what you want when you come to GSC, right? You want a really competitive game,” he said. “I loved seeing the team be able to bounce back after the first round when they had us on the buzzers a bit.”

For his part, Ruggiero already had his eyes on how to prepare for the team’s upcoming quarterfinal game.

“There are so many hidden variables that can happen,” he said. “I think it’s important that we prepare for that and be flexible.”

Chausovsky spoke for many in attendance with her less restrained enthusiasm.

“It was so exciting to watch these kids,” she said. “All the kids on both teams are geniuses.”