ROGERS — Ten students lined up in front of the student body of Birch Kirksey Middle School on Wednesday ready to be grilled on geography.

They qualified as finalists in the schoolwide geography bee through a test given by their history teachers and after passing the semifinal round held Tuesday at the school.

The audience applauded correct answers and finalists got high-fives from other competitors as they dropped from the championship round.

Finalists Swetha Sirigineedi and Ethan Davis traded several rounds before Ethan missed a question and Swetha was proclaimed winner. Sai Sirigineedi, Swetha’s twin brother, took third. All three of this year’s finalists are in seventh grade.

Some questions were harder than others, Swetha said.

She will take a final written test to represent Kirksey at the state competition in April. One of three female finalists, Swetha said she follows the pattern of the question and takes clues from the information there.

“It depends on where the state is,” Swetha said of questions relating to U.S. geography.

It is the second year the bee has been held in front of the entire school, said Brynn Sims, history teacher who coordinated the Kirksey competition.

“I think it builds a culture that geography is important. All kids can see the value of it,” Sims said.

Swetha and Sai have different study styles, but both had to be responsible and committed to participate in a geography bee, said their mom, Jagadeswani Karanam. Quiz bowl has coaching, but students were mostly on their own studying for the geography bee, Karanam said.

“I’m really proud,” Karanam said. “They work hard.”

Ethan Davis, who took second, was in the top four last year, Sims said.

Eighth-grader Jacob Hertz took fourth place in Wednesday’s competition. He has a passion for history and studied his continents, countries and their attributes in preparation for the bee, said his mom, Maryisa Hertz.

“Really it’s just knowledge that you gain from reading,” she said.

Finalists answered questions about international and U.S. geography, boundaries and took clues from physical features.

Geography, Sims said, is important to build global citizens.

“I think people feel like Americans aren’t as aware of the world around them and I think this shows that we are,” Sims said.

The National Geographic Bee allows for school bees to be held from Nov. 12 through Jan. 15 for the 2013 competition. State bees will be held April 5, 2013. State winners will advance to the national level bee held May 20-22.