Blessed Pope John Paul II High School (JPII) defeated Flour Bluff High School 440 to 330 to capture the KEDT Challenge Championship for the second consecutive year.
This is JPII’s 6th year to participate in the Challenge competition. In 2010, they were runners up for the KEDT Challenge Championship to Rock Port Fulton. In 2011, they won the Championship over Calallen High School.
“How great is that?” team sponsor Jane Elia Longoria said. “I am very proud of our wonderful team and I am grateful to God that we won the second time. This championship reflects how great our school is.”
The team is made up of seniors Victor Gonzalez, Tobias Hendricks, Isaac H. Kimmel, Daniel Ramos and Marcus Rodríguez and sophomore Patrick Sheridan.
“Being a part of the Challenge has been an incredibly memorable experience. The past four years as part of the John Paul II team are full of adventures that I will remember for years to come. Winning the championship the second year in a row was the icing on the cake, and it is great to see all our hard work paying off,” Gonzalez said.
“Appearing in three Challenge championship games and winning two has been an experience that will stay with me forever,” Kimmel said. “Many guys my age use their skill in sports or the performing arts to try to make names for themselves. I appreciate the chance that the Challenge has given me to use my particular skill set to compete and achieve glory for myself, my team and my school. It’s been a huge thrill.”
Longoria expressed the team’s appreciation to the Kennedy Foundation, Bishop Wm. Michael Mulvey, Bishop Emeritus Edmond Carmody, Father Peter Martinez, the Corpus Christi Catholic Schools, school administration, teachers, staff, students and parents for all their support.
“I would also like to thank Del Mar College and Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi for providing our students with scholarships to attend their schools and Pizza State for always providing us with some great pizza after every taping and of course the wonderful staff at KEDT for all the years providing the schools to participate in this exciting challenging event,” Longoria said.