Kanton Senior High School is back on the national stage of the NSMQ after a commanding performance in the second contest of the 2025 Upper West regional qualifiers.

The Tumu-based school scored an impressive 41 points to finish well ahead of Queen of Peace SHS (28 points) and Daffiama SHS (15 points), securing their ticket to the national championship in October.

The win marks a significant comeback for Kanton SHS, who missed out on national qualification in 2024. Their return is especially symbolic, as it rekindles memories of their historic 2021 run, where they stunned fans across the country by reaching the quarter-finals, the school’s best-ever performance at the national level.

Kanton SHS’s 2021 journey, which included a dramatic one-point win over Apam SHS in the one-eighth stage, earned them national awards, including the “best performing school from a deprived community”.

Speaking after the contest, members of the Kanton team expressed both pride and renewed ambition, “missing out last year was painful, so we worked even harder. Now, we’re prepared for any school at the national championship — we are going all the way to win.”

Queen of Peace SHS, who qualified for nationals in 2023 and 2024, put up a solid fight but couldn’t close the gap on the more precise and faster Kanton team. Daffiama SHS, still seeking their first-ever appearance on the national stage, finished third with 15 points.