By DIANE GASPER-O'BRIEN

dobrien@dailynews.net

The last time Quinter High School hosted a regional scholars bowl meet, it advanced to state.

The Bulldogs hope competing at home will help them again Thursday.

For the first time since 2007, Quinter will be one of the eight sites for a Class 1A regional meet. Coincidentally, that was the last time Quinter advanced to state.

Like most 1A schools, most of Sandii Ostmeyer's squad members are involved in a variety of activities.

Therefore, her team gets to practice just once a week. And they haven't had their entire team together for a single meet this season.

The Bulldogs still have enjoyed a successful season, finishing in the top three of all its meets despite usually competing with a different squad each time out.

This time, because of some misfortune in another activity, the Bulldog scholars bowl team will be at full strength Thursday.

Senior Zach Nemechek, a two-way starter on Quinter's state championship football team this year, wasn't able to attend many of the first-semester scholars bowl meets.

A multi-sport athlete, Nemechek will be on hand for the scholars bowl team Thursday to try to help his school qualify for another state meet, because he's been sidelined from basketball for several weeks because of a broken foot.

Nemechek will be joined by three classmates who have competed in scholars bowl since their freshman year -- Aleyse Crist, Jared Polifka and Austin Zerr.

Rounding out Quinter's regional team will be two other veterans, juniors Hayley Funk and Emma Kitch, who also have competed since their ninth-grade season.

"I think they can compete well," Ostmeyer said of her veteran squad. "But we're in a really tough pool. Ness City is strong, the team to beat in our pool."

Only the top two from the 1A regional meets qualify for state.

Other teams in Quinter's and Ness City's pool will be Logan, Otis-Bison, Ransom-Western Plains and Victoria.

The other pool consists of Almena-Northern Valley, Hoxie, Kensington-Thunder Ridge, Natoma and Palco.

Natoma will be looking to qualify for its third state meet in four years.

Downs-Lakeside, which will be trying to qualify for its third consecutive state meet after finishing fourth at the 2009 season finale, will compete at the Wilson regional.

Other returning state qualifiers from the area from a year ago are Bird City-Cheylin, which will compete in the Tribune 1A regional Thursday, and Atwood-Rawlins County, which will compete at the 2A Leoti regional and try for its fourth state appearance in five years. Like Lakeside, Rawlins County finished fourth at its state meet last year.

State meets are set for Feb. 13. The 1A finale is at Rosalia-Flinthills, while 2A state is at Goessel, 3A at Cimarron and 4A at Topeka-Hayden.

The following is a list of regional scholars bowl meets involving area schools Thursday:

Class 4A at Kingman -- Andale, Buhler, Cheney, Clearwater, Colby, Haven, Hugoton, Kingman, Maize South, Nickerson, Pratt, Russell, Scott City.

Class 2A at Brookville -- Bennington, Brookville/Ell-Saline, Canton-Galva, Goessel, Herington, Hutchinson-Trinity, Inman,

Langdon-Fairfield, Mankato-Rock Hills, Moundridge, Osborne, Peabody.

Class 2A at Leoti -- Atwood-Rawlins County, Elkhart, Ellis, Hill City, Johnson-Stanton County, Kinsley, LaCrosse, Leoti-Wichita

County, Meade, Oakley, Oberlin-Decatur Community, Spearville, Sublette, Syracuse, WaKeeney-Trego

Community.

Class 1A at Tribune -- Bird City-Cheylin, Brewster, Deerfield, Dighton, Grainfield/Wheatland-Grinnell, Healy, Rexford-Golden Plains, Sharon Springs-Wallace County, Tribune-Greeley County, Weskan, Winona-Triplains.

Class 1A at Wilson -- Bushton-Quivira Heights, Chase, Claflin, Downs-Lakeside, Glasco, Lincoln, Little River, Lucas-Luray, Sylvan Unified, Tescott, Tipton, Wilson.