NDP ROBOTICS TEAMS RULE THE “THRONE” AT STATE CHAMPIONSHIP

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March 11, 2026

For information on admission to Notre Dame Prep, please click here.

Four Notre Dame Prep VEX IQ teams shine at the Mix and Match Elementary School Michigan State Championship, earning awards, top finishes and valuable experience.

Notre Dame Prep’s VEX Robotics teams had an outstanding showing at the Michigan VIQRC Elementary State Championship held March 6–7 at Monroe County Community College in Monroe. Competing among 49 teams from across Michigan — including those from Ludington, Caseville, Caledonia and Hancock in the Upper Peninsula — four NDP teams represented the school with skill, creativity and teamwork in the 12-and-under division.

Team 3333E, “Dino Nuggets” (sixth graders Nolan Qarana, Nolan Rod and Yash Sharma), advanced to the finals and briefly held the competition’s “throne,” the seat reserved for the team holding the top score during the finals.

Team 3333G, “Hoodie Bros” (William Janka, Holden Lewandowski and Henrik Janka), finished fifth overall in Skills, fifth in Driver Skills and sixth in the Teamwork Finals, while also spending time on the throne during the finals.

Team 3333R, “Team Wolfy” (Isabella Giannetti, Stella Haverland and Grace Reed), earned the event’s Build Award, recognizing excellence in robot construction and design.

Team 3333Y, “Bob’s Builders” (Charles Harding, Mazen Sheqwara, Zachary Zara, Jack Yarbrough and Ishaan Goldsmith), placed fifth overall in the Teamwork Finals and held the throne for four matches.

“For all four teams, competing at the state championship level was a new experience, and they represented Notre Dame Prep with excellence, curiosity and perseverance,” said Jerry Palardy, who mentors Notre Dame Prep’s VEX Robotics activities.

Programs like VEX Robotics highlight the wide range of extracurricular opportunities available to Notre Dame Prep students—from the earliest grades through high school—where they can explore interests, develop teamwork and leadership skills, and challenge themselves in academics, athletics, arts and STEM.

Congratulations to these students and their mentors for an impressive performance at the state championship.

 

For information on admission to Notre Dame Prep, please click here.

Comments or questions? mkelly@ndpma.org

About Notre Dame Preparatory School
"At Notre Dame Prep, we inspire our students to become the best versions of themselves. We challenge them through an experience of academic excellence, focused on active, project-based learning. We invite them to explore a world of opportunities beyond the classroom. We guide them as they grow in spirituality within a community strong in its Catholic and Marist identity."

Notre Dame Preparatory School is a private, Catholic, independent, coeducational day school located in Oakland County. Notre Dame Preparatory School'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 Prep's middle and lower schools enroll students in pre-kindergarten through grade eight. All three schools are International Baccalaureate "World Schools." NDP is conducted by the Marist Fathers and Brothers and is accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Central States and the National Association of Independent Schools. For more on Notre Dame Preparatory School, visit the school’s home page at www.ndpma.org.