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WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. (JUNE 2, 2020) — Among the four Williamsport Area School District Odyssey of the Mind teams that virtually competed in the World Finals recently, one group from Curtin Intermediate School earned a historic second-place ranking from among 118 teams. 

Of the other three, one from Williamsport Area High School earned an eighth-place win, while another took 15th. One other team from Curtin Intermediate took 20th.

“From the time the quarantine started, our kids continued to meet virtually to prepare. Their teamwork, creativity, problem solving and perseverance is to be commended,” said Spring Moore, a WAHS English teacher, district OM coordinator and coach.

The four contending groups that competed in the World Finals were:

• Curtin Intermediate (Team A): Second Place, Division I, “Classics … The Effective Detective,” coached by Spring Moore and Bret Southard. Team members: Lynnae Campbell, Ava Carter, Cooper Gutberlet, Asher McClelland, Libby Smith and Daniel Turner.
  
  
• Williamsport Area High School (Team A): Eighth Place, Division III, “Classics … The Effective Detective,” coached by Spring Moore. Team members: Charlotte DeBloois, Paige Diabelko, Daisy LeBlanc, Emily Smith, Katie Turner and Carlee Weber.
  
  
• Williamsport Area High School (Team B): 15th Place, Division III, “Classics … The Effective Detective,” coached by Beth Lewis and Liz Manetta. Team members: Olivia Ciabattari, Mia Clark, Kendall Kelley, Sydney Kelley, Lisa Lewis, Ben Manetta, and Lizzie Ryder.
  
  
• Curtin Intermediate: 20th Place, Division I, “Gibberish or Not,” coached by April Frank, Adam Harpster and Melanie Vail. Team members: Grayson Arriaga, Emily Frank, Cooper Gutberlet, Brayden Harpster, Chaedyn Lockard, Julisa Martin and Alex Vail.

The World Finals was originally scheduled to take place at Iowa State University last month.
With the cancellation of the in-person event due to the pandemic, each team competed virtually by sending in a performance video that solved the problem.

“As an addendum to their performance video, teams had additional time to explain and highlight portions of their solution the way they could one-on-one to judges immediately following a performance,” Moore said.

Last year, two district teams from Cochran Primary and WAMS also were successful in the program’s regional, state and world competitions. Those teams competed at the World Finals at Michigan State University. There, WAMS earned a historic third-place win and Cochran a 12th-place win.

Odyssey of the Mind is a competition that blends creativity, engineering and teamwork. It is 100 percent student-directed, with adult coaches acting as guides. For more information, or to review synopses of this year’s program problems, visit www.odysseyofthemind.org.

View More 2020 OM Team Photos