Providence, R.I. – A three-member team from Providence College defeated students from the University of Maine to capture the title of “New England’s smartest school” in the final round of the AT&T Schooled: New England Sports Network’s (NESN) College Face Off competition.

PC was represented by Allison M. Burg ’14 (Vernon, Conn.), Christopher J. Pedraita ’13 (Glen Cove, N.Y.), and Steven T. Fleming ’11 (Wakefield, Mass.) in the challenge, which tested students’ academic prowess and teamwork in pressured, time-sensitive situations.

Burg credited the victory to her team’s chemistry and the students’ varied academic backgrounds. Burg is an applied physics major, Pedraita is studying history and secondary education, and Fleming majored in global studies.

“So when we got to work together, we were really just unstoppable, especially in the trivia department,” Burg said.

For Pedraita, the key during the competition was time spent in the College’s Development of Western Civilization Program with “exceptional teachers.”

“I always knew I was getting a great education here at PC, but to put what I had learned to the test against other schools was really exciting,” Pedraita said. “There was even more of a thrill because each team we faced was a large state university.”

In the opening, quarter-final round of the single-elimination competition, PC triumphed over the University of Connecticut. To advance, the Providence team defeated the University of Massachusetts in the semi-finals.

All three rounds were telecast on NESN in September, with the championship airing on September 23. On the night of the first telecast, when PC and UConn squared off, a viewing party was held in McPhail’s in PC’s Slavin Center. The party included a scavenger hunt with prizes provided by NESN, along with a DVD viewing of the match.

PC was the only Rhode Island school selected for the challenge, which was taped on college campuses in the spring and hosted by comedian Michael Showalter. Other schools participating were Boston College, Boston University, Northeastern University, the University of Maine, and the University of Vermont.