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Wilkes-Barre native and King’s College graduate Abigail Myers was crowned “Jeopardy!” champion on Monday and continued her run Tuesday.
She’ll be back Wednesday night to hopefully add to her total of nearly $40,000.
Myers, who went to E.L. Meyers High School, beat out two-day champion Eric Vernon on Monday after he attempted a true Daily Double right before Final Jeopardy and answered incorrectly, therefore not qualifying for the final round. During Final Jeopardy, Myers beat out Billy Wong on a question about India and Pakistan joining the British Commonwealth in 1947.
Myers walked away with a one-day total of $29,000.
The Brooklyn, N.Y., education administrator returned Tuesday and had a rough ride through most of the show. It wasn’t until competitor Jace Cochran had $3,000 that Myers earned her first dollars.
But she made quite the comeback, going into Final Jeopardy with the lead.
Though she didn’t answer the final question about contemporary artists correctly, she kept her wager modest to beat out Cochran and Lena Liberman, taking home a two-day total of $39,200.
The process of getting on the show took Myers more than a year — from first applying to when the episodes actually aired. In a Times Leader interview before Tuesday’s show, she said she applied online “just for fun” in January 2016 and received a call in June to audition in person later that month.
It wasn’t until November that she was notified she would be a contestant.
“Everyone is so nice, the fellow contestants were great to be around,” she recalled.
Myers revealed that the show tapes five episodes a day, and while she can’t say how many more episodes she wins, “I was there long enough.”
She had a watch party with her friends Monday but was taking a more low-key approach Tuesday.
To tackle the questions, Myers used online-timed quizzes to help her on subjects that were not her strengths. She also attributes her love of reading to helping boost her body of knowledge.
Though she can’t say how much she won, she wants to donate a portion to charity. She’ll also pay off some student loans and plans to buy herself “something fun.”
She’s been in New York since 2006, but returns to the Wyoming Valley often because her mom and some extended family are still here. A Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins fan, Myers also enjoys food from La Tolteca and Grotto Pizza when she visits.
Wednesday’s episode begins at 7:30 p.m. on WBRE.
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