Colorado High Schoolers Shine in Annual STEM Competition
In the State’s Regional Science Bowl, Fossil Ridge Reclaims Top Spot
A science showdown took place on March 14 at Metropolitan State University (MSU) Denver, with 28 teams of high school students from across the Front Range going head-to-head to see whose knowledge of the niche intricacies of science prevailed.
Following preliminary rounds and lunchtime tiebreakers, the double-elimination tournament was narrowed to the top 16 teams. Seven rounds of competition later, the late afternoon championship came down to just two: Fossil Ridge High School out of Fort Collins and Cherry Creek High School in Greenwood Village.
In a tense double-elimination game in the final round, the teams traversed questions across the spectrum of science: chemistry, physics, biology, math, energy, and Earth and space.
Derek Passarelli, director of the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Golden Field Office, moderated the finals, delivering the very last question: “What scale is most commonly used today to estimate the total energy released by an earthquake?”
Answer: the moment magnitude scale.
As the buzzer sounded, it was Fossil Ridge High School that landed first place, a school that has now won the Colorado Regional High School Science Bowl five out of six years in recent history: undefeated from 2021 to 2024, runner-up to Stargate School in 2025, and back on top this year. The win means they are headed to Washington, D.C., for the National Science Bowl in April.
A Storied History of STEM Education
Students at the March 14 competition became part of the National Science Bowl’s 35-year history. Established by DOE in 1991, the program has engaged more than 350,000 students nationwide, encouraging them to pursue studies and careers in science, engineering, technology, and mathematics (STEM).
Beginning in January each year, about 10,000 middle and high school students compete in 65 high school and 50 middle school regional Science Bowl tournaments.
Colorado’s Regional High School Science Bowl is sponsored each year by DOE’s Golden Field Office and the National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR), with MSU Denver joining in 2024 as cosponsor and host of the event. Their coordinated efforts help bring this regional competition to life each year.
NLR’s Tom Mason and Meghan Pearson are lead organizers for the science bowl, receiving support from more than 60 volunteers across NLR and local institutions, including the Colorado School of Mines.
Pearson, a STEM education specialist by day but self-proclaimed “wrangler of humans” at the annual science bowl, emphasized the enthusiasm students bring to the competition each year.
“The kids are just incredible—it’s so fun to watch their brains work,” Pearson said. “These kids love science, and they like knowing stuff about science. I love that they show up every year ready to compete.”
Passarelli closed out the event by applauding organizers, finalists, and the community that supports them.
“Stargate, what a wonderful show for a defending champion—that was fantastic,” he said. “We couldn’t remember the last time we had a double elimination in the last round, so that was quite a show. And Fossil Ridge, you really showed up. Congratulations.”
“You see all of this happen in a day, but Tom and Meghan put in work for long periods of time to get this thing to go just seamlessly,” Passarelli said. “And a reminder—you’ve got a lot of loved ones here. Please turn around and give them a big round of applause.”
Fossil Ridge’s Return
As for the Fossil Ridge team, their success, according to Coach Brian Riedel, comes down to their own sense of discipline, keeping their eyes on the prize.
“It’s 100% them,” Riedel said. “These guys work extremely hard. They go through questions on Fridays during lunch and then after school on Fridays. I have very little input on what they're doing. I helped make their teams, but there are categories that they specialize in, and they study on their own away from school.”
“I’m insanely proud of them—they’ve been awesome,” he added.
Presenting the first-place trophy to the students, Mason, K–12 STEM education and outreach program coordinator at NLR, also recognized Fossil Ridge’s continued excellence.
“What a great tradition—what a great history and heritage at your school,” Mason said. “Go represent Colorado well in Washington, D.C.”
The team took a well-deserved beat to celebrate over hot pot before soon turning their focus back to studying for nationals.
“It’s going to be fun to go to D.C.,” said team member Ella Wang. “I’m probably going to continue reading textbooks … so many textbooks, to get more in-depth knowledge and prepare.”
Participating Schools
The 2026 Colorado Regional High School Science Bowl featured 28 teams from 18 schools, including:
- Fossil Ridge High School
- Cherry Creek High School
- Stargate School
- Kent Denver High School
- Fort Collins High School
- Poudre High School
- Conifer High School
- Chatfield High School
- Rocky Mountain High School
- Centennial High School
- Fairview High School
- Severance High School
- Academy of Charter Schools
- Rock Canyon High School
- Ridgeview Classical High School
- Lakewood High School
- STEM School Highlands Ranch
- Smoky Hill High School
Speaking at the awards ceremony, Jahi Simbai, senior manager of NLR’s workforce development team, took a moment to acknowledge the effort behind each team’s performance.
“Thank you for your willingness to prepare yourselves for this high-paced and intense experience,” Simbai said. “You should all be proud of the way you competed today, and for all the preparation and work you put in to get to this point. Everybody gets to see the final rounds, but you did a lot of work to get here. We want to acknowledge that—thank you for that work.”
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Last Updated Jan. 22, 2026