Trine bridge teams compete

Two Trine University Bridge Club teams competed in an intercollegiate American Contract Bridge League on April 7.

The Thunder Aces, made up of Isaac Braun, a sophomore from Portland, Indiana, majoring in chemical engineering, Ryan Hoak, a junior from Warsaw, Indiana, majoring in civil engineering, Cameron Orr, an MBA student from Angola, Indiana, and Treyton Sederstrom, a junior from Cedar Lake, Indiana, majoring in actuarial science, placed 10^th out of the 21 teams competing.

The Thunder Aces defeated teams from Northwestern, Brown, Wisconsin, Alberta and Georgetown.

Orr said it’s the best performance the team has had in an official collegiate competition.

“As we defeated Georgetown in our final match of the day – a hotly contested battle and well-earned victory in our eight hour of play – that secured our top-10 finish, all I could think about was how much the young team has grown in the last year,” he said.

The Storming Setters, made up of Keely Brooks, a senior from Van Buren, Ohio, majoring in chemical engineering, Alex Kratzer, a junior from Elkhart, Indiana, majoring in mechanical engineering, Ryan Sederstrom, a freshman from Cedar Lake, Indiana, majoring in electrical engineering, and Christopher Shively, a junior from Churubusco, Indiana, majoring in accounting, placed 20^th.

The teams will participate in the North American Bridge Championships this July in Toronto.

“I think that, in learning to play, I've been able to develop skills in critical thinking and planning, and I've also come to better understand the way I learn,” said Kratzer. “I truly think bridge is helping me in my degree.”