10 Odyssey of the Mind teams advance to state finals
For the second year in a row, 10 teams from Upper St. Clair earned top spots at the annual Western Pennsylvania Odyssey of the Mind Regional Tournament – qualifying to advance to the state finals on April 1, 2023, at Lock Haven University.
In total, 22 Upper St. Clair teams, comprising 144 students with representation from all six of the district’s schools, competed against teams from across the region. The regional tournament was held on Saturday, March 4, at Keystone Oaks Middle and High Schools.
The following teams are advancing to the Pennsylvania Odyssey of the Mind State Finals:
DIVISION 1 (grades 3-5)
The team from Boyce Middle School who solved the technical problem earned first place. Team members include Brayden Wong, Luka Beric, Owen Ptak, Anay Patel, Nirvan Seth, Vinay Patel and Tusya Rathore. The team is coached by Nimisha Hirpara and Jodie Ptak.
The team from Boyce Middle School who solved the classics problem earned first place. Team members include Emily Brooks, Evelyn Dolan, Eleanor Wilkinson, Savannah Comiski, Matthew Campagna, Emma Mycoff and Grace Reis. This team is coached by Stefani Wilkinson and Denise Campagna.
The team from Streams Elementary who solved the performance problem earned second place. Team members include Cassidy King, Molly Guarino, Elise Mostowy, Keirsten King, Sarah Sakowitz and Kimberly Krofcheck. This team is coached by Dawn Mostowy and Trisha Krofcheck.
The team from Eisenhower Elementary who solved the balsa problem earned third place. Team members include Aadit Patel, Veer Bhargava, Declan Wong, Kiyaan Mendhi, Keefer Kommer, Keith Smith and Aditya Singh. This team is coached by Angelic Smith and Nimisha Hirpara.
The team from Boyce Middle School who solved the vehicle problem earned fourth place. Team members include Lydia Calkins, Logan Dunkin, Ivan Yanov, Jacob Reinford, Caroline Fingal, Drew Holzer and Brighton Perrotti. This team is coached by John Reinford and Courtney Yanov.
DIVISION 2 (grades 6-8)
The team from Fort Couch Middle School who solved the technical problem earned first place. Team members include Nigel Bailey, Thea Scheuerle, Parker Sams, Samuel An, Michael Ryan Blessing, Ashwin Vasudevan and Daphne Collins. This team is coached by Sarah Sams and Jake Collins.
The team from Boyce Middle School who solved the technical problem earned second place. Team members include Colby Caplan, Owen Maher, Lindsey Fitzgerald, Kate McClintock-Comeaux, Hagen McCurry, Ben Fitzgerald and Addy McCallum. This team is coached by Shanna Caplan and Cortney McCurry.
The team from Fort Couch Middle School who solved the vehicle problem earned third place. Team members include Rasika Khedikar, Daniyal Badaruddin, Ryan Katukota Ian Putorti, Preston McLeod and Trevor McClintock-Comeaux. This team is coached by Dawn Predmore and Yesha Gandhi.
DIVISION 3 (grades 9-12)
The team from USCHS who solved the technical problem earned first place. Team members include Ian Hills, Jillian Torres, Vera Radke, Mark Torres and Yaqoot Zalloum. This team is coached by Rema Abdin and Kim Koch.
The team from USCHS who solved the classics problem earned second place. Team members include Chloe Faist, Zahra Hossain, Geneva Eisinger, Lauren Ginsburg, Artie McCallum, Kurt Baran and Ayan Amin. This team is coached by Nate Eisinger and Artie Baran.
Each team of up to seven students worked together for five months to solve a long-term problem in one of five chosen categories: vehicle, technical, classics, balsa or performance. At the tournament, they were given eight minutes to present their solutions for a panel of judges and were required to provide supporting paperwork including a budget breakdown of their work.
Teams were also required to solve one spontaneous problem that was given to them on the spot. Combined scores in both categories (long term and spontaneous), along with additional points for style, provided the tournament results.
Odyssey of the Mind is an international STEAM program that fosters creative problem-solving skills, teamwork and ownership in students from kindergarten through grade 12. One of the trademarks of the program is its “no outside assistance” philosophy. All ideas, scripts, props, solutions and paperwork are generated by the team members with no input from coaches, parents or teachers.
For more information about Odyssey of the Mind in Upper St. Clair, visit www.uscootm.com or email uscootm@gmail.com.