Hudson Middle School Wins Westlake Science Olympiad Tournament
The Hudson Middle School Science Olympiad team started off the 2023 year strong with a first-place finish at the Westlake Invitational on Jan. 7.
The competition was fierce, as Solon Middle School (Ohio; fourth place at U.S. Nationals), Daniel Wright Junior Middle School (Illinois; sixth place at U.S. Nationals) were part of a strong field of 27 teams from Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Ohio. It was the first time the Hudson team has won an Ohio invitational tournament other than a regional tournament.
"We have come a long way since our program started in 2016," head coach Jordan Renna said. "This is a great way to start off 2023 year."
Assistant Coach Chirag Patel noted that the students had the best supplies and gear, thanks to help from the Northeast Ohio STEM Alliance, Burton D. Morgan Foundation, Don Patron Mexican Grill, Hudson Community Foundation, Hudson Kiwanis Foundation, Lianda Corp., dozens of individual donors, and the Hudson City School District.
The team expressed its appreciation to parent event mentors and the HMS administration and custodial staff for the extra support and coordination with the additional practice times for the team.
1st place: Experimental Design (Duy Tran/Evan Lee/Kate Justice)
1st place: Forestry (Gemma Ward/Millie Griffiths)
1st place: Mystery Architecture (Hajoo Yu/Emily Shott)
1st place: Picture This (Ella Betka/Henry Niswander/Talia Zmeili)
1st place: Roller Coaster (Hajoo Yu/Kate Justice)
1st place: Wheeled Vehicle (Hajoo Yu/Kate Justice)
2nd place: Crime Busters (Jerry Du/Sherry Li)
2nd place: Disease Detectives (Duy Tran/Elena Cheng)
2nd place: Experimental Design (Emma Liu/Hudson Reaper/Tristan Dunphy)
2nd place: Meteorology (Elena Cheng/Gemma Ward)
2nd place: Mystery Architecture (Ella Betka/Henry Niswander)
2nd place: Optics (Jerry Du/Sherry Li)
3rd place: Anatomy and Physiology (Emily Shott/Gemma Ward)
3rd place: Code Busters (Jerry Du/Maanav Patel/Sherry Li)
3rd place: Crave the Wave (Jerry Du/Sherry Li)
3rd place: Fast Facts (Anna Barger/Emily Shott)
3rd place: Optics (Jane Winston/Steven Fodor)
3rd place: Sounds of Music (Hudson Reaper/Maria Metoki)
3rd place: Storm the Castle (Jocelyn Vogel/Matthew Matyja)
4th place: Bio Process Lab (Elena Cheng/Gemma Ward)
4th place: Bridges (Evan Lee/Maanav Patel)
4th place: Picture This (Jocelyn Vogel/Millie Griffiths/Hajoo Yu)
4th place: Sounds of Music (Evan Lee/Sherry Li)
4th place: Wheeled Vehicle (Jessie Cheng/Mariam Khankan)
5th place: Disease Detectives (Emma Liu/Romey Kim)
5th place: Dynamic Planet (Elena Cheng/Gemma Ward)
5th place: Wheeled Vehicle (Evie Jensen/Talia Zmeili)
6th place: Can’t Judge a Powder (Jerry Du/Sherry Li)
6th place: Experimental Design (Jax Murgatroyd/Juliana Justice/Morgan Griffiths)
6th place: Flight (Evie Jensen/Elena Varga)
6th place: Green Generation (Anna Barger/Duy Tran)
6th place: Road Scholar (Julia Schneider/Millie Griffiths)
6th place: Rocks and Minerals (Julia Schneider/Millie Griffiths)
7th place: Flight (Juliana Justice/Nolan Mesmer)
7th place: Roller Coaster (Andrew Yamakowski/William Pendergrass)
8th place: Solar System (Anna Barger/Elena Cheng)
8th place: Storm the Castle (Andrew Yamakowski/William Pendergrass)
9th place: Crave the Wave (Jane Winston/Steven Fodor)
9th place: Dynamic Planet (Jane Winston/Tristan Dunphy)
9th place: Sounds of Music (Matthew Le/Vincent Minnillo)
9th place: Storm the Castle (Jax Murgatroyd/Nolan Mesmer)
10th place: Bridges (Juliana Justice/Mariam Khankan)
10th place: Write It/Do It (Jocelyn Vogel/Matthew Matyja)
Next the team will head to the Kenston Invitational, followed up by three Invitational tournaments in February, Solon, Mentor and then the Hudson team conclude the regular season with a trip to the West Liberty-Salem Tournament.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Hudson Middle School Science Olympiad team wins first place
