On Sunday, March 26, three contenders faced off in the second task of the anticipated Triwizard Tournament – a tournament of three rival schools’ representative champions fighting for the prize.
This was the second segment of the tournament. The first task was hosted by Northwestern College last semester, but this round was hosted by Briar Cliff University.
Heading into the task, Conor Ryan, the champion of Briar Cliff, was in the lead with 34 points. Cade Pedersen, the NW champion, followed close behind with 30 points. Finally, Lydia Herman from Dordt University was situated in third with 29 points.
Briar Cliff set up a competition comprised of multiple mini games including corn hole, pool and a round of bingo. They also incorporated challenges such as flipping a key into a cup, picking up candy with chopsticks and hunting for the golden snitch.
The scores haven’t been released yet, but NW champion Cade Pedersen feels good about his performance. “I did better than the first [task] and while I do not know the score, I am pretty sure I came out with the W,” Pedersen said.
Pedersen may be the only NW champion, but he wasn’t the only Raider present on Sunday afternoon. Lucas Heiberger, director of student programs and the mastermind of the Triwizard Tournament, attended the event.
“It was great to be out at the Cliff,” Heiberger said, “And it was awesome to see Cade have a really nice time and set himself up for a great final task.”
Pedersen may have been confident about his standing after the second task, but he recognizes the competition isn’t over yet. He said, “Conor and I are going to be neck and neck going into the final task, and Lydia isn’t out of the equation yet either. It is still anyone’s game.”
The third task will be hosted by Dordt University sometime before the end of the semester.
Heiberger has been in contact with Derek Buteyn, the head of planning for the final task at Dordt. According to Heiberger, the Dort activities council is planning something that’s “turned into a big thing that they’re really excited about.”
“It’s gonna be a hype finale,” Heiberger said, “They have the big bubble now, so maybe they’ll do something with that. Someone thinks they’re gonna do a maze in the big bubble.” Heiberger even mentioned to Dordt his suggestion of doing a boat race for the final task.
As of now, talk of what the final task will include is purely speculative. The third task and all that it involves will be purposely kept top secret until the time arrives.
This secrecy has done little to dampen Pedersen’s anticipation and confidence about the final task. “I look forward to the next task and am ready to take home the big $1000,” Pedersen said.
