Mariner Middle places third in Odyssey of the Mind world finals
When announcers listed the teams earning sixth to fourth place in the Odyssey of the Mind world finals, Mariner Middle’s team figured it didn’t make the cut.
After all, the team competed against 59 others from 42 states and 10 countries. Then, the third-place winner was revealed: Mariner had tied with a Swiss team in Division II of the Rocking World Detour competition.
The team, comprising sixth-graders Allison Swift, Fiona Fisher, McKenzie Russell, Abigail Wagner, Nellie Bohl, Robin Rion Starr and Maddie Hill, and coaches Kathleen Fisher and Cathy Rion Starr, said the honor was a shock.
Mariner was the only Delaware team with a top world finish this year, students said, and all of the Delaware squads cheered when Mariner’s win was announced.
The group has worked together for several years and always chooses the performance problem to capitalize on their strength; several students are involved in theater.
They developed a climate change storyline in which a touring rock band is transported from a polluted city to the last rainforest on earth, where a wise flower and a toucan teach the band members, personifying a tornado, wildfires, drought and a marine heat wave, lessons they can use to end the pollution.
Many team members are Girl Scouts, and they said they incorporated lessons they had learned about drinking from reusable water bottles and other ways to make a difference as they wrote the skit. With a cost limit of $135, they were able to use cardboard and recycled materials for costumes and supplies.
Three things broke right before the performance, adding to the stress, coach Kathleen Fisher said, noting it was exceptional they could work through the tension and stress and still support each other.
Judges said the skit had more impact with the climate change theme, and that students went above and beyond to spread the message, Fisher said.
Students said there was so much applause after the performance and they felt an amazing relief when it was over. In the spontaneous problem-solving competition, the team had to create a device used in the year 3029, so they created a polluted air purifier to go along with the theme of their long-term problem.
They brought home a collection of pins traded with students from other states and countries, and are already thinking about next year’s problem.
Before the world competition, the Mariner team placed first at states with the only perfect score in the tournament and also earned the coveted Ranatra Fusca Creativity Award, which was last bestowed in 2018. The team placed second in regional competition.
