To the Highest Stage: Casady Science Olympiad Dominates at State

Eddy Kang (‘24), Co‐Editor‐in‐Chief

A squadron of students donning white and navy long‐sleeves lug boxes replete with balsa wood architecture, calibrated machines, and aged lab equipment. The portable printer toils away in the classroom corner, spewing out “cheat sheets” with 0.3 inch margins, crammed diagrams, and microscopic text just large enough to read without a magnifying glass. 

This is the average atmosphere of a Science Olympiad, or “SciOly” tournament. For all the broken‐in‐transit wooden airplanes, late‐hour study sessions, and last‐minute sprints to event rooms, Casady SciOly’s victory at the 2024 State Tournament on April 6 was a sweet reward. In a decisive sweep, the Casady Science Olympiad C Division Team, composed of 10th to 12th graders, placed first in 15 out of 23 events, while holding a top three medal in 22 events.

Casady’s C Division Team has continued to dominate this season, with first place finishes in four out of five tournaments this year. This most recent win means that Casady will head to Michigan State University from May 24‐25 for the Science Olympiad National Tournament, where Casady will compete against 59 other teams from across and outside of the country.

Although without an official meeting time during school hours, SciOly members meet regularly both after school and on weekends in order to design prototypes for builds and to study with the help of school sponsors and outside experts. This rigorous regimen keeps SciOly members in shape for the taxing competitions they compete in. 

Daisy Le (‘26) and Humza Saif (‘25) are Casady SciOly’s representatives for the event “Anatomy and Physiology,” which covers the structure and functions of the Cardiovascular, Lymphatic, and Excretory Systems. They meet with Dr. Hirtzel on Mondays and Wednesdays from 3:45 to 4:30 to review relevant topics, take practice tests, and look over tests from previous competitions. 

The Anatomy “cheat sheet” made by Daisy Le (‘26), Humza Saif (‘25), Ethan Tubb (‘24), and Khrish Patel (‘25)

Daisy said, “[Anatomy sessions] are really, really helpful. It’s not only that you get to know the material really well. It's also a confidence boost. [...] Dr. Hirtzel’s really great. Leading up to competitions, he’ll [give] us pep talks.”

SciOly members also participate in regular Saturday work sessions, which are important for building team spirit and unity, a crucial aspect of the SciOly experience. According to Daisy, SciOly preparation is not an individual pursuit. “[In] every event, you have a partner. And especially in study events, you have to know your partner well, know what they know, know what they don’t know, and then find a way to mish‐mash.” This distribution of labor is pivotal at the higher level, as tests often contain a plethora of topics with countless different offshoots.

All team members attend Saturday meetings, and it is a time not only for diligent work, but for laughter and camaraderie. Regarding these sessions, Daisy jokingly remarked, “Free food. That’s the best part.” 

Much SciOly preparation takes place outside of the classroom as well, sometimes even in students’ living rooms. Krish Patel (‘25) and Kevin Wang (‘25) have been working tirelessly on the event “Robot Tour” since SciOly season began. In this event, competitors design and code a robot which must navigate its way through a maze, passing through multiple checkpoints in order to boost their score. The event supervisor also sets a target time for maze completion, which competitors strive to match for extra points. 

Krish Patel (‘25) and Kevin Wang (‘25) modifying their robot

Regarding his preparation for Robot Tour this year, Krish said, “There’s been a four‐by‐four maze [...] in my living room for the past four months.” Many of Krish’s test runs take place at his house, and he has dedicated “200 hours plus” to the event so far, even spending a large portion of his winter break working on the robot. After receiving a perfect score at the State Tournament, Krish and Kevin are hungry to display the fruits of their sleepless nights at Nationals.

Krish Patel's (‘25) living room “Robot Tour” setup

This year’s C Division Team is one of the strongest yet, largely thanks to the efforts of Ms. Zesiger, Mrs. Hirtzel, Dr. Hirtzel, and Mr. Hofer, the SciOly sponsors for this year. The numerous, regular study sessions they’ve held have greatly contributed to the success of the team. They have dedicated many, many after school hours and weekends with the goal of growing the team in terms of both success and educational enrichment. Much of the work they do goes unnoticed, including registering all team members for tournaments, coordinating with tournament administrators, and scheduling travel plans both instate and out of state.

Reflecting on the 2023‐2024 season, Ms. Zesiger said, “Overall, I think the team this year has been amazing. [...] There’s [also] been better camaraderie. I’ve been working with this group for three years. I think each one knows what is expected [of them].” She is excited for the team to “perform as well as we can and hopefully improve our ranking from previous years.”