With a two-point margin, Archbishop Porter Girls' SHS outsmarted St John’s School to earn the bragging rights of 2021 National Science and Maths Quiz (NSMQ) Western Zonal Champions.

Securing 32 points, Archbishop Porter Girls SHS on Wednesday carried the day in the first-ever edition of the Western Absa Zonal Championship.

Although it was a keen contest, the ladies from the hill of tranquility proved to be a force to reckon with as they faced Tarkwa SHS and St. John’s School in the Regional finale.

Western Zone

End of contest

Archbishop Porter Girls' SHS: 32pts
St. John's School: 30pts
Tarkwa SHS: 19pts

The first ever Western Zonal Champions are the ladies from the hill of tranquility, Archbishop Porter Girls' SHS! Well done! #NSMQ2021 #AbsaZonalChampionship #Primetime pic.twitter.com/QrtKdLzDpC

— NSMQ Ghana (@NSMQGhana) May 19, 2021

They secured their victory by rightfully answering the last question which enabled them to by-pass St John’s School, who, at the end of the contest earned 30 points.

Archbishop Porter Girls SHS in its quest to become the ultimate Regional Champions subdued one-time NSMQ National Champions, Ghana Secondary Technical School (G.S.T.S), St John’s and six other schools.

Speaking to JoyNews’ Maxwell Agbagba after their victory, both Trainer, Matthew Atta and Head Girls’ Prefect, Maxima Danzi expressed immense excitement over their success.

“We are very excited today for being the first school to win this Championship in this zone. In fact, we are very excited,” Mr Atta said.

Recounting how they journeyed through the hurdle, especially encountering G.S.T.S, Maxima Danzi attributed their victory to God Almighty and the efforts of their coach.

She noted that being taught that girls can equally perform as boys do and in some cases, better, the contestants remain composed to bring their contenders down on their knees.

 “For the first contest with GSTS, we made sure we weren’t intimidated by the boys. First of all, our magic was God and secondly, our coach mentored us very well and made us understand that we are no different from the boys. And we can do equally and even better than even the boys so that was what motivated us. We calmed our nerves down and we were able to do the contest.

She added that “moving into the finals, it was an exciting experience. We did the same magic. It was God and our coach who mentored us to come this far.”

After being crowned Western Zonal Champions, contestants of Archbishop Porter Girls say this milestone is just the tip of the iceberg as they intend to carry the 2021 NSMQ National Championship trophy.

“Well, from this, I think this is the start. This is not the end. It is just the beginning and you will see more. Expect the best and we know with God, victory is on our side,” they stated.