BY KAREN BOSSICK

Two Wood River High School seniors have been named finalists in the National Merit Scholarship Program.

The first—Chase Geagan—took eight advanced placement courses during his senior year, while collaborating with his peers as a second-year Student Boddy President and in other leadership positions in various school clubs.

He was a four-year varsity starter on the Wood River High School lacrosse team. And he founded and runs his own aircraft detailing business.

He plans to take a gap year this year to build flight hours, grow his aircraft detailing business in Sun Valley and expand his operation to Jackson Hole. Then, in the fall of 2026, he plans to head to UCLA to pursue a major in Business Economics and a double minor in Entrepreneurship and Spanish.

The other--Zach Quesnel—completed 10 advanced placement classes during high school, while maintaining a 4.0 grade point average. He is the present of Space Club and a member of Investment Club. He plays the piano, loves to read and competed on the Wood River Mountain Bike Team and Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation Cross-Country Ski Team.

He also is taking a gap year—in his case, to pursue ski racing. He has not yet determined what his future path in academics will be.

The National Merit Scholarship Program is an academic competition for high school students who excel on their PSAT/NMSQT tests. Finalists are chosen from more than 15,000 high-achieving students and are eligible for $2,500 National Merit Scholarships, which are awarded based on a combination of academic merit and the students’ extracurricular activities.