Pictured left to right are embers of Red Bank Regional Academy of Information Technology “Team Maroon” Kyle Neary, Josh Eve, Tyler Birn, Louis DiOrio, Bobby Villaluz (being held up) and Mark Eulner). The students took first place in the State round of the CyberPatriot competition, among 48 competing teams.
Press release from Red Bank Regional High School
Two teams from the Red Bank Regional High School Academy of Information Technology (AOIT) recently finished first and second in New Jersey in the state round of the National Youth Cyber Defense Competition. Both teams now go on to compete in the regional round of the competition, which takes place January 16- 18.
In all, 2,175 teams registered to compete in the nationwide Cyber Patriot tournament, with 48 teams from New Jersey.
Pictured left to right are RBR Team White competitors Cris Sochacki, Andrew Noglows, Zach Carrano (front row), with Thomas Smith and Ryan Terpak standing in the back row. Senior Derek Arnheiter also competed on the team that took Second Place in the recent State round of Cyber Patriot competition.
Team Maroon, the first place winner, boasted a membership that included seniors Tyler Birn (Red Bank), Louis DiOrio (Union Beach), Mark Eulner (Shrewsbury) and Josh Even (Shrewsbury), as well as sophomores Kyle Neary and Bobby Villaluz (both Shrewsbury). Team White, the second place winner, featured seniors Derek Arnheiter (Little Silver), Zach Carrano (Little Silver), Thomas Smith (Shrewsbury), Cris Sochacki (Union Beach), and Ryan Terpak (Union Beach), in addition to junior Andrew Noglows (Little Silver).
With the recent devastating attack on Sony Pictures making international headlines, the need for talented students seeking cyber security career path becomes immensely more important.
Led by Coach Mandy Galante and Assistant Coach Jeremy Milonas, the two teams of RBR students excelled in the CyberPatriot VII State Round held this past December, demonstrating teamwork, critical thinking skills and technical knowledge key to a successful career in cybersecurity.
“We had an incredibly strong roster of students coming out for CyberPatriot this year, some veterans and some rookies,” said Mandy Galante, RBR CyberPatriot coach, adding, “But no matter what happens at Regionals, many of the team members are interested in cybersecurity careers and this competition has given them a chance to prove that they have what it takes to succeed in this growing and vital field.”
For the past eight years, RBR’s Academy of Information Technology has run a premier, award-winning and highly recognized cyber security course of study for its students. It is one of only three schools with such a program in the state of New Jersey. Year after year, students from all over Monmouth County enroll in the AOIT to train in a career in IT; many find an allure and talent to succeed in the vital cyber security field. In October, RBR student teams competed in the national Pico CTF challenge sponsored by Carnegie Mellon University. Four RBR Cyber teams scored in the top 15 percent of the over 3,100 teams competing nationwide.
