Middle and high school advance six teams to the state finals.
The “All Bees Alliance” from Notre Dame and their robots, from left, Sean Chaiyasate, Joe Schiefer, Trevor Rowe, Jaimie Krankel, John Jernigan, Manath Mohindra, Payton Beckman, Aaron Palardy, Jackson Plas and Joe LaSota. The alliance advanced to last Saturday's regional finals and qualified three ND Marist teams for the state finals.
"Overall they did outstanding, but it wasn't easy," Palardy said. "There were many unexpected technical issues and disappointing match results along the way, but in the end, we prevailed with six teams advancing to the Michigan State Championship next Sunday at the Jenison Field House in East Lansing."
The high point of the day Saturday for Notre Dame's middle school was during the final playoffs when the All Bees Alliance knocked off the favored #1 Alliance, advancing them to the finals thereby qualifying three of ND Marist teams for the states finals.
Notre Dame's Team 3333Y – The Queen Bees, from left, John Jernigan, Manath Mohindra and Jaimie Krankel.
"Not every team from Notre Dame won, but everyone had fun, while at the same time learning about robots, teamwork, planning, perseverance, sportsmanship, and other important life skills," said Palardy, who also noted that NDPMA was awarded "volunteer of the year" at the event for helping organize the competition and for providing fields and the emcee.
Notre Dame's Team 33T – He Who Shall Not Be Named – were the Skills Champions for high school. From left, Josh Samuels, Santiago Plazas, Nic Genord and Tom Joppich.
Notre Dame middle school awards and accomplishments:
3333Y – The Queen Bees (Jaimie Krankel, Manath Mohindra and John Jernigan) – Excellence Award (the highest award at the event); Skills Champion for Middle School Award; Teamwork Finalist
3333B – SMASH (Joe LaSota, Jackson Plas, Payton Beckman, and Aaron Palardy) – Teamwork Finalists
3333Z – The White Dragons (Trevor Rowe, Joe Schiefer, and Sean Chaiyasate) – Teamwork Finalists
3333J – The Flubb Drive (Josh Lyiynen, Jonathan Hubbard, and Lee Lindsey) – Semifinalist in playoffs; advanced to states as a wildcard
Notre Dame high school awards and accomplishments:
33T – He Who Shall Not Be Named (Nic Genord, Santiago Plazas, Josh Samuels, and Tom Joppich) – Skills Champion for High School; Ranked third in qualifications and advanced to playoffs
33K – The Gold Team (Evan Melucci, Evaristo Garcia, and Cooper Isham) – advanced to states as a wildcard
Team 3333B – SMASH, from left, Payton Beckman, Jackson Plas, Aaron Palardy and Joe LaSota.
Comments or questions? mkelly@ndpma.org.
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About Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy
Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy is a private, Catholic, independent, coeducational day school located in Oakland County. Notre Dame's upper school enrolls students in grades nine through twelve and has been named one of the nation's best 50 Catholic high schools (Acton Institute) four times since 2005. Notre Dame's middle and lower schools enroll students in pre-kindergarten through grade eight. All three schools are International Baccalaureate "World Schools." NDPMA is conducted by the Marist Fathers and Brothers and is accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Central States and the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement. For more on Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy, visit the school's home page at www.ndpma.org.