Presbyterian Boys Senior High School at Legon in Accra has won the National Science and Maths Quiz (NSMQ) for the ninth time.
PRESEC emerged top in the 2026 grand finale on Thursday night with 40 points, against Accra Academy's 33 points and that of St. Augustine's College's 27 points.
The 2026 competition started with a total of 174 schools.
With their coined tagline of “The Gr8t ADO9”, mimicking Adonai, a Hebrew word used to address God with deep respect PRESEC entered and dominated the grand finale of the 2026 competition from Round 3 to Round 5.
PRESEC’s most recent title came in 2023 when they overcame competition from Achimota School and Opoku Ware School to claim their eighth title and a historic second back-to-back win at the quiz championship.
Thursday’s final marked PRESEC’s 13th appearance in the grand finale, extending their record as the most successful school in the history of the competition.
For Accra Academy, the near miss was their closest attempt at the title as they made their first appearance in the grand finale only this year.
St Augustine’s College won in 2007 and 2019.
The 2026 grand finale got off to a competitive start as St. Augustine’s College and Accra Academy shared the lead with 11 points each.
PRESEC had 9 points, leaving the three finalists separated by just two points as the contest continued.
The competition became intense in Round 2, where St. Augustine’s College and PRESEC both scored 17 points, while Accra Academy recorded 14 points.
Round 3, the Problem of the Day, brought another test to the contestants. Accra Academy and St Augustine's scored zero each, out of the 10 points available, while PRESEC grabbed four points, which enabled them to shoot into the lead all the way to the final Round 5, where the contestants tackled a series of riddles in a last attempt to alter the outcome of the contest.
PRESEC’s performance in the final round sealed their victory as the school finished on 40 points, ahead of Accra Academy's 30 points and St Augustine's 27 points.
