PORTAGE | Rock beats scissors. Paper covers rock. Scissors cut paper.

It all comes down to the luck of the throw, just ask Mike Vasquez, the champ of the fourth grade Rock, Paper, Scissors tournament at Aylesworth Elementary School.

"I pick rock a lot because Noah picks scissors and paper mostly," said Mike, 9, fresh out of the grade-level championship round Tuesday morning.

Noah Hughes, 10, who came in second, agreed.

"It's luck pretty much," said Noah, adding his competitor knows him well, at least when it comes to the game.

The boys, along with Ethan Greene, competed in the second round of the school-wide tournament Tuesday. The tournament will culminate next week when the top student from each grade level, kindergarten through five and the top teacher have their own thrown down in the school's gym in front of the entire student body.

The top teacher, crowned Tuesday morning, is physical education teacher Cathy Potts.

Teacher Carrie Biggs began the competition last year to celebrate the end of ISTEP testing. She brought it back this year by popular demand. The students pay an entry fee of 50 cents per try, limit eight tries, during the first round. All the money goes to Relay for Life in memory of teacher Karen Kirchner who died several years ago after a battle with cancer.

The students love it, said Biggs.

For the competitors, it's the rush.

"It is just pretty much for the adrenaline for me," said Noah, who didn't make it out of the classroom competition last year.