Cal Poly’s winning Commercial Team members get together via Zoom after the ASC Competition that was virtual this year for the first time. The team members (to, from left) are Evan Tookey, Shaina Suanico and Lizette Galvez. On the bottom (from left) are Sophie Stewart, Skylar Schrank and Josh De Mattei.
Cal Poly students brought home 11 trophies from this year’s annual Associated Schools of Construction (ASC) Region 6 and 7 Student Competition, breaking their record set just last year when they won 10 awards, including six first-place trophies.
This year 11 of Cal Poly’s 14 teams finished in the top three spots, including 10 trophies won by construction management (CM) students and one trophy by civil engineering students. Four Cal Poly teams placed first, including three Construction Management Department teams — Project Management, Electrical and Mixed-Use teams — and the Virtual Design and Construction Team from the Civil Engineering Department.
The university earned nearly three times the number of trophies than its closest competitor, Idaho’s Boise State. The annual competition attracted nearly 1,100 students competing on 152 teams from 18 states representing 47 universities, including Brigham Young, UC Los Angeles, UC Berkeley, Stanford, the University of Southern California and the U.S. Air Force Academy.
In addition to the four top-place finishes, Cal Poly’s Commercial, Design Build, Integrated Project, Sustainable Building, Preconstruction and Concrete Solutions teams took second place. A second Cal Poly Virtual Design and Construction team placed third.
Cal Poly teams were made up of nearly an equal number of women and men.
Senior Dara Lin, who is majoring in construction management and architecture, participated with the Integrated Project Design team, which earned a second place in the graduate division. The team included all new members.
“Our hard work paid off,” said Lin, of Boston. “Although we hadn’t participated in the ASC competition before and the format was all virtual, we were able to collaborate effectively, and I’m proud of what the team was able to achieve.”
Construction Management Department Head Jeong Woo added: “Our teams’ outstanding results tell a great deal about student quality, faculty dedication and the excellence of Learn by Doing.”
The 2021 event marked the ASC’s 34th annual competition, held virtually Feb. 3-6. Cal Poly construction management students have been participating in the competition since its inception.
The student teams spend months preparing for the competition, working under the guidance of faculty coaches and team sponsors, many of whom are Cal Poly alumni. Because it was held virtually this year, students had to prepare quite differently. For the first time in the competition’s history, students were not allowed access to labs and rooms for practice runs.
“We prepared, practiced and expected the unexpected,” said Electric Team member Amanda Schrader of Huntington Beach. “Ultimately it came down to our team collaboration, determination and work ethic. It was an incredible opportunity for all of us. Our biggest takeaway is that team moral and dedication will always be a strong suit in the industry.”
Twelve individual team sponsors mentored them and helped pay for team shirts, new computers and other supplies. Cupertino Electric and Nibbi Brothers provided virtual collaboration tools for all the teams
“The sponsorships were instrumental in helping us shift to a virtual work environment. Our students could not do this without the continued financial support and mentoring of our generous sponsors,” Woo said. “Our student teams, their coaches and I really appreciate all their dedicated help.”
Cal Poly’s winning teams are:
First Place
• Electrical Team Members: CM students Connor Avrit of Orland; Morgan Gawle of Emerald Hills; Braden Hotra of Huntington Beach; Miriam Robles of Templeton; Amanda Schrader of Huntington Beach; James Ziebell of Marina; and alternates Heather Sailor of Morgan Hill; and Allison Wild of Rohnert Park. Sponsored by Sprig Electrical.
• Mixed-Use Team Members: CM students Jacob Clark of Placentia; Keagan Coyne of Newport Beach; Sebastian Froman of Santa Rosa; Ashley Isla of Salinas; Ryan Proctor of San Ramon; Chloe Riddlespurger of Solano Beach; and alternates Jake O’Balle of Moraga; and Anna Knutson of Danville. Sponsored by Holland Construction Inc.
• Project Management Team Members: CM students Makenna Gitchell of Santa Maria; Sophie Harrington of Pleasant Hill; Collin Martin of San Rafael; Reagan Milligan of San Jose; Molly Pryde of Castro Valley; Alex Trujillo of San Marcos; and alternates Christian Blevins of Antioch; and Jonah Kim of Aliso Viejo. Sponsored by Blach Construction.
• Virtual Design and Construction: Civil engineering students Sergio Beltran of El Centro; Casey Boyle of Roseville; Ingrid Chan of San Bruno; Serina Feng of Elk Grove; Esmeralda Cruz Pacheco of Santa Maria; and Andy Sazima of Granite Bay.
Second Place
• Commercial Team Members: CM students Josh De Mattei of Monte Sereno; Liz Galvez of Somis; Skylar Schrank of Orange; Sophie Stewart of South Lake Tahoe; Shaina Suanico of Chula Vista; Evan Tookey of Torrance; and alternates Dylan Barrett of Walnut Creek; and Joseph Miller of San Luis Obispo. Sponsored by XL Construction.
• Concrete Solutions Team Members: CM students Grace Brekke of Oakland; Peter Finocchio of Los Gatos; Jack Radovan of Santa Cruz; Thomas Rogers of San Jose; Jackson Thomas of Pleasant Hill; Sterling Treloar of Silverado; and alternates Jenny Knickerbocker; and Sierra Williamson, both of San Diego. Sponsored by BuildGroup.
• Design Build Team Members: CM students Ellis Fryer of Los Osos; John Leone of San Diego; Zack Pasma of Niwot, Colorado; Sydney Sitton of Huntington Beach; Greta Stout of San Anselmo; Luke Terrio of Bakersfield; and alternates Catie Dines of San Diego; and Michaela Denny of Fallbrook. Sponsored by XL Construction.
• Integrated Project Team Members: CM students Kiana Dehpanah of Morgan Hill; Dara Lin of Boston; Joyce Huang Ooi of Santa Clara; Ashley Pang of Honolulu; Samuel Wong of Santa Rosa; Ezra Zuidema of Anaheim; and alternate Rafael Gali of San Jose. Sponsored by Pankow.
• Preconstruction Team Members: CM students Molly Bobrovitch of Morago; Kyra Glaus of Solvang; Connor Morinini of Santa Maria; Ryan Nielsen of El Dorado Hills; Shay O’Laughlin of Cardiff; Jane Runte of Penryn; and alternates Kieran Barker of Fairfield, Connecticut; and Jack Sampson of Santa Ana. Sponsored by SC Builders.
• Sustainable Building Team Members: CM students Bradley Burfield of Redwood City; Bella Crafton of Costa Mesa; James Foad of Cameron Park; Hailey Lancaster of San Mateo; Danielle Moody of San Diego; Madeleine Zetterquist of San Jose; and alternates Jaqueline Badal of Danville; and Oliver Leograndis of Corte Madera. Sponsored by Level 10 Construction.
Third Place
• Virtual Design and Construction Team Members: CM students Kyle Bresnahan of Long Beach; Sydnee Greer of Granite Bay; Jared Jacobs of Sammamish, Washington; Allen Le of Lakewood; Carter Melick of Mercer Island, Washington; Joshua Shockey of Chino Hills; and alternates Nathan Giannini of Granite Bay; and Cooper Strong of Fort Collins, Colorado. Sponsored by Snyder Langston.
The Heavy-Civil and Mechanical teams — supported by McGuire & Hester and Dome Construction, respectively — did not place.
