SMS Wins 2025 WV History Bowl
Sherrard Middle School West Virginia History Bowl Team 2 defeated Sherrard Middle School West Virginia History Bowl Team 1 by a score of 28 to 20 to capture this year’s state title, making them Mountain State champions four years in row.
Coached by Dan Gatts and Jeff Stephens, this year’s championship-winning team consisted of Brady Barnhart, Drew Marling, Abby Allman and Griffin Sturgill. The Rams won five games to secure the 2025 crown. Each student received a trophy and an electronic device to celebrate their win.
The team began its journey to The Culture Center in Charleston by winning the 9th annual Marshall County Schools West Virginia History Bowl held at the Grave Creek Mound Archaeological Complex in November. From there, the two SMS teams placed first and second at the Region VI WV History Bowl in February at Independence Hall in Wheeling. That’s where they punched their ticket to the WV Capitol Complex for the statewide contest.
Sherrard Middle School West Virginia History Bowl Team 1, made up of Kabe Blake, Colsen McCutcheon, Izzie Dougherty and Chloe Weekley, earned the distinction of second place at the state match. They were also awarded trophies and electronic devices to celebrate their achievement.
This year’s victory at the 16th annual competition marks the fifth time Sherrard Middle School has secured the state’s highest honor in the West Virginia History Bowl. This is the first time the same school won first and second place in the tourney.
Meanwhile, Coach Gatts has guided a record-setting eight teams to the state title. Before becoming a teacher at Sherrard Middle School, he previously led the Cameron High School Dragons to state victories in 2015, 2017 and 2018. Gatts’ Sherrard Middle School team also collected state trophies in 2020, 2022, 2023 and 2024.
The WV History Bowl began in 2010 for eighth-grade students from around West Virginia.